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Island Residents Paid to Protect Paradise
19 Feb
Summary
- Principe residents to receive annual stipends for biodiversity preservation.
- Program aims to create an economic model valuing nature and community.
- A three-year pilot will test sustainability and replicability of the initiative.
Technology tycoon Mark Shuttleworth is initiating a novel program on Principe, an island off Africa's west coast, to financially reward its inhabitants for safeguarding biodiversity. Starting next week, around 3,000 adults, comprising about 60% of the island's adult population, will receive annual stipends of up to 20,000 dobras ($958). These payments, disbursed quarterly by Shuttleworth's nonprofit Faya, are contingent on residents not engaging in environmentally harmful activities.
This initiative is reportedly the first of its kind, spearheaded by an individual with the explicit goal of preserving a region's natural assets. Principe, a UNESCO biosphere reserve, is renowned for its high concentration of endemic species. The program seeks to establish an economic model that concurrently values environmental protection and enhances local living standards.
South African-born Shuttleworth, who owns four resorts on the island, aims to prove that development does not necessitate the destruction of natural resources. A pilot phase of three years is planned, with an estimated cost of €15 million, to evaluate the program's sustainability and its potential for being replicated elsewhere. The island's government is a signatory to the agreement.
