Africa’s mainland and island states have rich and varied coastal and marine resources, both living and nonliving.

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The coasts range from deserts to fertile plains to rain forests, from coral reefs to lagoons, and from high-relief rocky shores to deeply indented estuaries and deltas. Their marine environments include the open Atlantic and Indian oceans and the almost landlocked Mediterranean and Red seas. Continental shelves, where waters are less than 200 meters deep, in some places extend more than 200 kilometers offshore, while elsewhere they are almost absent (UNEP, 2006).

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The biodiversity of the coastal zone is an important resource and there are many designated protected areas, both wetland and marine. The coral reefs, sea-grass beds, sand dunes, estuaries, mangrove forests and other wetlands that occur around many shores provide valuable services for humanity, as well as crucial nursery habitats for marine animals and sanctuaries for endangered species. During the last decade or so, substantial oil and natural gas resources have been discovered offshore, particularly in West Africa.

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