Enhancing Social Resilience Through Marine Conservation Policies: A Case Study of Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria

The neglect of social resilience in policy-making weakens efforts to safeguard marine resources and leads to the failure of marine conservation policies. Natural resource policies that consider resource users’ resilience are likely to be more effective at attaining resource sustainability while minimising the policy’s economic and social effects. Over the years, the government of Nigeria has put in place several conservation policies (MCPs) to strengthen its blue economy. Unfortunately, the country is still having challenges with the effective conservation of its marine resources. This study examines the link between marine conservation policies and social resilience in the Ibeju-Lekki local government area of Lagos in Nigeria. A mixed–method approach was used to examine the extent to which marine conservation policies influence social resilience in eight coastal communities. A total sample of 411 fishermen was analysed using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and binary logistic regression. The study found that the public awareness campaigns, monitoring, and enforcement mechanisms for marine conservation policies are largely ineffective. The marine resource users in Ibeju-Lekki are socially resilient to some extent. The marine resource users exhibit increased resilience when they perceive conservation policies to be beneficial and vice versa. The study recommends an intensification of the government’s awareness creation on MCPs via vigorous community engagement and holistic enforcement strategies. The engagement should involve regular and targeted community durbars with the marine resource users to clearly and effectively communicate the objectives and benefits of the MCPs. In addition, the study recommends the harmonisation of constant inspection and monitoring approaches. To minimise the negative impact of MCPs and enhance compliance, we further recommend that the government of Nigeria and relevant marine planning agencies should provide compensatory economic assistance to resource users who may suffer declines in welfare when complying with MCPs.