On Tuesday, 16^th August 2022, a section of level 200 students from the University of Ghana’s School of Biological Sciences paid a visit to the MPS Sea Turtle Hatchery which is wholly funded and managed by Meridian Port Services Ltd.

The visit formed part of the studies of the undergraduates of the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences to help them become acquainted with the activities involved in sea turtle conservation as it is a course at the Department.

The Hatchery Attendant, Manasseh Amenyabor provided details of the actions involved in the management of the hatchery including the daily monitoring of the shorelines for eggs that may be endangered and their relocation to the hatchery for monitoring and subsequent release into the sea when hatched.

The students were led by Dr. Andrews Agyekumhene, a lecturer with the department who explained to the sixty (60) students what had been learnt in the classroom relating to threats faced by sea turtles and how to mitigate the threats to ensure the conservation of turtles. The students were delighted to have witnessed the hatching of a nest of eggs.

Some of the students shared their thoughts after visiting the hatchery.

Jennifer Dede Ankrah said “The field trip has provided me with practical experience on sea turtle conservation techniques that has been successful in Ghana as I studied in class. The experience of seeing and releasing a sea turtle hatchling into the ocean was awesome and life changing. I am in love with sea turtles now and I appreciate their existence more.”

For Samson Kofi, it was an educative experience where he learnt about the life cycle of the turtle “For me I would say I was happy to be there because so many things were said in class but not practically done. But over there we saw a lot of things with our eyes. Many of us held the turtles, saw how they reacted and how it was able to crawl back into the ocean. We would want to be there once more to experience more.”

In highlighting the importance of the hatchery, Dr. Andrews Agyekumhene who is also a sea turtle consultant said “The field trip to the MPS Sea Turtle Hatchery is very important for the Department because it is one of the few places, and perhaps the best place, in Ghana now that can afford the students that experience to observe turtle protection ex-situ. The visit to the facility has very much enlightened the students and given them hands-on experience about turtle conservation. After the trip, I have several students showing interest in sea turtle work and conservation. This is indicative of how much impact the trip has made on their attitude.

It is the hope of the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences to sustain this collaboration with MPS to help train the future conservation leaders in how to protect these precious species. He added.

A key function of the MPS Sea Turtle Conservation Program is to promote sea turtle education. Since its establishment in 2017, the conservation program has undertaken public awareness sessions where educational institutions and surrounding communities are informed about the importance of turtles. With an over 80% success rate, the MPS conservation program has seen the protection and release of over 100,000 sea turtle eggs and hatchlings since its commencement.