Mangroves Under Demographic Pressure and Salt Production Threats in the Municipality of Ouidah (Benin)

Three coastal villages in the municipality of Ouidah (Djegbadji, Avlekete, and Houakpe-Daho), well-known for their salt production activities, are experiencing a substantial challenge regarding protection and conservation of the mangrove forest, a key component of their ecosystem. The increasing growth of these communities (more than 200% between 1992 and 2016) has led to the progressive destruction of the mangrove trees needed for firewood. This situation has dramatically threatened the sustainability of the whole ecosystem of the mangrove forest on which many other species rely on. In this work, we investigated the historical development of the situations from a demographical aspect and the possible consequences for the communities and future generations. It’s has been shown based on the community growth rate that salt production which is the main activity in the region and employed more than half of the population (women and men) is the main cause for the destruction of the mangrove forest. Therefore, the town-hall services led discussions with the salt producers to find a more sustainable solution. Actions have then been taken to reduce the impact of these activities on the ecosystem, and propose some alternative solutions to the salt producers such as improved stoves which use palm nut hulls as the source of energy for their main activity.