Since 1990, Zanzibar has become a primary seaweed producer in Africa. Seaweed farming activities are usually small-scale and carried out in the intertidal zones largely in marine conservation areas, near mangroves and coral reefs. Eighty-eight per cent of seaweed farmers are women, making this an important activity to elevate their economic status and role in the community. New approaches to aquaculture and marine conservation have emerged only recently (in terms of concrete projects since 2014), with the case in Zanzibar serving as a first attempt to test the level of adherence of seaweed farming with the IUCN Global Standard for Nature-based Solutionsᵀᴹ.