Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB)

High Court Victory for African Penguins   It has been one year since BirdLife South Africa and SANCCOB launched legal action against the office of the Minister of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment to secure scientifically informed no-take fishing zones around key African Penguin colonies. We are proud to share that an out of court settlement has been reached between BirdLife South, SANCCOB and the commercial sardine and anchovy purse seine fishers, which was subsequently endorsed by the DFFE. The settlement agreement was made an order of the court, which provides for reconfigured delineations of no-take zones around 6 African Penguin breeding colonies for 10 years. The reconfigured closures will replace the current closures which scientists have maintained were inadequate to reduce competition for sardines and anchovies between commercial fishers and penguins.   The settlement agreement was hard fought by the conservation and legal teams; negotiations lasted for several weeks which were extremely time consuming, however the settlement resulted in an agreement that is beneficial to African Penguins. This is an important step in the right direction; however, we have not lost sight that the DFFE is required to implement these no-take zones and ensure enforcement, and a monitoring and evaluation plan is in place.    We extend our heartfelt thanks to our legal team, the Biodiversity Law Centre and our counsel, our donors, conservation partners and supporters. Much more work is required to save the iconic African Penguin but for now, this is a conservation win.

We're Hiring: Marketing and Media Coordinator - SANCCOB Table View, Cape Town SANCCOB is a leading seabird conservation organisation, and we are looking for a passionate, creative, and driven Marketing and Media Coordinator to join our dynamic team in Table View. If you're experienced in digital marketing, social media management, content creation, and eager to make a meaningful impact in seabird conservation, we'd love to hear from you! 📍 Location: Table View, Cape Town 📅 Closing Date: 16 April 2025 📩 Apply: Email your CV and cover letter to marushka@sanccob.co.za or click on the following link: https://lnkd.in/dey59vVD Together, let's amplify SANCCOB's mission to protect seabirds! 🌍 #SeabirdConservation #JoinOurTeam #SANCCOB

The deadline for abstracts for The Effects of Oiled Wildlife Conference has been extended to the 17th April. The program committee is particularly interested in more poster and panel presentations. GOWRS members, International Bird Rescue and Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research, Inc., founders of the EOW conference are working with another GOWRS member, Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) to host the conference in Cape Town. This is to commemorate 25 year since the Treasure Oil Spill disaster when over 19,000 oiled African penguins were rescued and released. The event will also highlight the plight of the African penguin, whose numbers have declined so drastically, that the species has been recently uplisted to Critically Endangered by the IUCN as the species could go extinct by 2035. #oiled #wildlife #assessment #preparedness #wildliferesponse #penguin

Abstract Deadline Extended! While we have an amazing number of excellent abstracts submitted, we still have a few spots for oral presentations and can accommodate more posters. So if you have not yet submitted your abstracts for consideration to present at our amazing conference in South Africa, please get them in to us as soon as possible. Abstracts will be accepted through 17 April, and reviews will be done once those submitted by the previous deadline are complete. Review and notification of accepted abstracts will be sent by 17 May. Please follow the abstract submission guidelines below, and email your abstracts to eowprogram2025@gmail.com for consideration

Due to the ongoing and severe population decline of the African Penguin, the first African Penguin Biodiversity Management Plan (BMP) was published in 2013, with the aim to “halt the decline of the African penguin population”. Unfortunately, this 5-year objective was not achieved and warranted a second BMP which is still to be gazetted. This recently published paper reviews the execution of the plan; it’s successes, failures and lessons learnt: https://lnkd.in/dNnUGh4R #SANCCOBSavesSeabirds #SaveTheAfricanPenguin #AfricanPenguin

Looking forward to a week-long meeting discussing global wildlife preparedness with our #GOWRS colleagues. #oilspill #oiledwildlife #preparedness #prevention

Strong Partnerships Equals a WIN for Critically Endangered African Penguins   Taking legal action against the South African Government was a last resort, however, after years of disagreement between the conservation sector and the fishing industry, coupled with the ongoing declining population of African Penguin, BirdLife South Africa and SANCCOB agreed that we had no other choice. During the year of litigation, the iconic African Penguin was uplisted to Critically Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN); this uplisting only confirmed that more urgent interventions were required for this species to have a fighting chance.   It’s been a long and difficult road that led to a hard-won out-of-court settlement agreement that was made in order of the court by the Pretoria High Court this week. The order details the no-take zones for commercial sardine and anchovy fisheries around six African Penguin breeding colonies that are scientifically informed to reflect African Penguins’ foraging areas.   We are incredibly grateful to our conservation partner, BirdLife South Africa for the trust you placed in us, and our joint determination that resulted in this monumental outcome. We look forward to continuing our work towards improving protection for the African Penguin. #SaveTheAfricanPenguin

🚨 News just in! Today, our partners Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) and BirdLife South Africa secured a huge victory for the beloved African Penguin. The NGOs, fishing industry, and the South African government have united to establish new no-take zones around six major breeding sites of the Critically Endangered African Penguin. This agreement, secured for the next decade, is a monumental step in protecting this iconic species and preserving our marine biodiversity. We are so proud of our campaigning efforts over the past seven months, targeting South African, UK and international media to turn the tide for the future of the African Penguin. Read more about the result in The Guardian here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eDAe-P7e Tara O'Driscoll Emma Ninham Declan Gibbon Blue Marine Foundation Biodiversity Law Centre

We know the March of the Penguin Madness competition is underway, but a WIN just happened for African Penguins! A conservation victory was achieved last week as an out-of-court settlement established expanded no-fishing zones around six key African Penguin breeding colonies for the next ten years. The agreement, made a court order on March 18, ensures that small-pelagic fishing is restricted year-round in areas key to the survival of the Critically Endangered African Penguin. Conservation groups BirdLife South Africa and SANCCOB led the legal challenge against the previous closures since they were insufficient to protect penguins from competition with the fishing industry for sardines and anchovies. The lack of fish for African Penguins has been identified by SANCCOB and scientists as a key driver of decline for African Penguins. The new, more extensive exclusion zones mark a significant step toward securing a future for Africa’s only penguin species. Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB), one of our key conservation partners, played a pivotal role in this victory and continues to champion African Penguin conservation. As part of our ongoing collaboration, two of SANCCOB’s rehabilitated penguins are currently competing in the March of the Penguin Madness competition, bringing awareness to the urgent need for penguin protection. While this legal triumph represents major progress, SANCCOB and other conservation leaders emphasize that continued monitoring and enforcement are essential to ensuring the long-term success of these protective measures. While challenges remain, this agreement is a milestone in the ongoing fight to prevent the extinction of African Penguins and highlights the importance of collaborative conservation efforts. Read More: https://lnkd.in/gBhgtZQb #SANCCOB #SaveAfricanPenguins #AfricanPenguinSAFE #NotOnOurWatch #PengWIN #CriticallyEndangered

The last year has been a battle. We have spent hours drafting, translating the science of our incredible clients at BirdLife South Africa and Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) into legal argument, and, in the last few months, engaging with the respondents around possible settlement. This was by no means certain. At the eleventh hour, we managed to negotiate a landmark settlement that secures the key foraging areas of African Penguins around island breeding colonies. These must now be immediately implemented by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE). It has been an intense and rewarding journey for the Biodiversity Law Centre. It is the first case that we have taken to court, and to have achieved such a positive, immediately implementable outcome for African Penguins is an incredible win. It is going to take a few days for this to sink in. I started the Biodiversity Law Centre with Cormac Cullinan to address the critical need in South Africa for an organisation providing legal advice and support to other conservation organisations and communities seeking to protect and restore biodiversity. I could not be prouder that the outcome today has served this purpose, and that our small but mighty organisation can achieve real change in the fight to protect our threatened species.