Africa

From the coral gardens of Mozambique to the fishing communities of Tanzania, Africa's coastlines hold some of the ocean's most vital stories. These waters carry centuries of maritime tradition, ecological resilience, and the voices of communities whose lives are inseparable from the sea. SeaVoice explores the continent's deep relationship with its surrounding oceans.

All stories

The Tide Keepers

Indigenous Knowledge

Singing to the rhythm of the tides

Along the coast where Kenya meets Somalia, a string of coral islands and mangrove-fringed channels marks the edge of an ancient world.

Women and water are entwined like two vines

Olivia Mary Nantongo

Artistic Expression

Interview with artist Olivia Mary Nantongo

Born in Kampala, Olivia Mary Nantongo is part of a new generation of Ugandan artists reshaping contemporary African portraiture.

Peixinho

Kaush Subramaniam

Encounters & Observations

A story of overcoming fear, connecting with the ocean, and learning to survive.

The ocean is not always a place of wonder. Sometimes, it is where fear begins.

Malindi Bay through a Curatorial Lens

Marine Heritage

Intersections of History and Environment

This piece explores the deep and layered histories of Malindi Bay, a place where land and sea have long shaped human life, movement, and exchange along the Swahili coast.

Learnings from Lake Victoria

Artistic Expression

An interview with artist Fiker Solomon

Fiker Solomon's art uses yarn, jute, natural sponges and palm leaves

The Doors of Perception

Patrick Vernon OBE

Marine Heritage

Carved Doors and the Indian Ocean Slave Trade

Across the stone towns of the East African coast stand carved wooden doors

Where the Ocean Feeds the Story

Jessica Leigh Thornton

Intangible Food Heritage and Ocean Literacy in Zanzibar

Along the Swahili coast, the ocean is never just water.

Learning from the Coast

Heritage and Ocean Literacy in East Africa

When I first began working along the East African coast, I came with a particular understanding of the ocean.

The Last Working Dhows

Marine Heritage

What Lamu reveals about culture, labour and change

I first visited Lamu as a small boy in early 1972.

Currents of memory

Dr. Mohammed Muharram

East African coastal lives in a warming Indian Ocean

At dawn, the East African shoreline is rarely still.

When the Ngalawas sail

Indigenous Knowledge

How a traditional boat racing festival is reviving Indigenous ocean knowledge for the future.

A beautiful scene of turquoise blue waters against clear skies on a hot Sunday morning along Diani Beach in Kenya.

A poem on the Kilifi Ocean - Depression

Wellbeing & Blue Mind

Bahari Yetu: a song that carries the Swahili Coast

Dr. Claudia Lubao

Using Popular Music for Ocean Literacy on the Swahili Coast

The water is shallow here, clear enough to see sea grass shifting beneath the surface.

Dagaa and Dignity

Editrudith Lukanga

Sustainable Livelihoods

The Women of Lake Victoria Who Read the Water

Before sunrise breaks over Lake Victoria, the women are already awake.

The keepers of the salt: A daughter's song for Lamu

Joyleen Sagandira

Artistic Expression

In the Comoros, find the guardians of the Gombessa

Biodiversity & Conservation

Whose Knowledge Counts?

Jentrix Chochy Sakwa

Indigenous Knowledge

Ethnographic Insights from Lamu Archipelago on Deciphering Ocean Heritage

The ocean is not silent.

The Shorekeepers

Jentrix Chochy Sakwa

Indigenous Knowledge

Women, Memory, and Ocean Knowledge in Coastal Kenya

Long before seawalls were constructed and global funding became a standard feature of shoreline protection, women along the Kenyan coast practiced a sophisticated form of shoreline management.

Ossunculo

Mothers of the sea in Mozambique Island

In the still-dark dawn on Mozambique Island, Fátima Celestino rises before the sun. At 68 years old, she has lived by the sea since childhood.

Muthianas: the invisible daughters of the sea

At low tide, the reef appears before the boats.

Growing a future from the sea

Sustainable Livelihoods

The Hiari Women Group redefine their traditional roles through their seaweed business

In many coastal communities in Tanzania, long-standing cultural norms have traditionally placed men as the sole providers for their families.

Moving oars in unison

Biodiversity & Conservation

Protecting the Western Indian Ocean's seagrass

Chombo hakiendi ikiwa kila mtu anapiga makasia yake—a boat does not move forward if everyone is rowing in their own way.

Protecting marine cultural heritage of Mozambique Island

Mozambique Island: Protecting Heritage Beneath the Surface

Marine Heritage

September 29, 2025

Local archaeologists combat treasure hunting and protect Mozambique Island's rich heritage

Since I was a child, I have always appreciated the

Blue echoes of a young woman

Blue Echoes of a Young Woman: Ocean Identity and Voice in Tanzania

Shamim Wasii Nyanda

"Protecting our ocean ecosystems is not just a job—it is a calling."

In the face of mounting environmental challenges, I have come to realize how important the role of women is in driving sustainable solutions and protecting our ocean ecosystems.

Meet PADI’s first South African Adaptive Blind Diver: sensing underwater visions

Meet South Africa's first blind Scuba Diver

Inspiring Ocean Voices

October 31, 2024

Jessica Pita senses underwater visions

Have you ever really considered how grand the open oceans are?

Beyond Barriers: virtual diving with giants

Beyond Barriers: Virtual Diving with Giants in Laamu Atoll, Maldives

Jasmine Corbett

Technology & Innovation

October 28, 2024

Ocean accessibility through VR diving with manta rays

The sensation of water—its coolness, its weight, its embrace—resonates deeply with our emotions and memories.

Ocean-Impact tech for adaptation & inclusivity in African coastal communities

Tools of the Tide

Alexis Grosskopf

Fisheries & Aquaculture

Tech for Inclusion and Adaptation on Africa's Coasts

The immense potential of Africa’s ocean resources is clear, offering opportunities for economic growth, job creation, and enhanced food security.

Crumbling walls: mapping for marine equity in South Africa

Beyond the Lines

Fisheries & Aquaculture

Rethinking Ocean Maps for Equity

Places mapped in the mind

Blue school in a desert

Learning the Sea Where There Is No Shore

February 29, 2024

One January evening in 2022, after a dusty eight-hour drive from Windhoek, I arrived at the end of the road in Lüderitz – the distinctive Namibian town where the ocean meets the desert.

Mikoko (mangroves): The community efforts to restore a mangrove ecosystem in Mida Creek, Kenya

Rebuilding a Forest at the Edge of the Sea

Imara Bella Thorpe

Biodiversity & Conservation

November 30, 2023

Journey through the mangroves...

Inside the SCUBA diving community of Egypt’s Red Sea

Inside the SCUBA diving community of Egypt’s Red Sea

Encounters & Observations

November 29, 2023

Experience Egypt

Voices of the Vezo: community-led filmmaking in Madagascar

Voices of the Vezo

Indigenous Knowledge

November 28, 2023

Along the turquoise waters of southwest Madagascar live the Vezo, a people whose livelihoods and culture have been intricately connected to the ocean since their arrival in Madagascar some 2,000 years ago.

SeaVoice Newsletter

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At SeaVoice, we believe that understanding the complex dynamics between human culture and the environment is crucial for addressing the challenges we face today. By exploring the stories of those who have a deep connection to bodies of water, we gain a deeper appreciation for the importance of preserving and protecting these invaluable resources.

SeaVoice is produced by the Ocean Decade Heritage Network UK (ODHN-UK). ODHN-UK is a registered Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SC052384)