This article first appeared in www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com

27th November 2009

View online here

The old fort is full of intriguing sense data. Walking past one doorway, you hear the clang of metal beating metal and the murmur of voices; through another, you catch a glimpse of a man bringing a fire to life with the bellows of his lungs. The smoke mixes with the salty-stale smell of the ocean blowing in over the ramparts. Outside, feeling the same sun that has caused the paint on the walls to flake start to beat down on your skin, you seek shade under the canopy of the sole tree occupying the whitewashed courtyard.

Nowadays the Fort of São João Batista (St John the Baptist) on the shore of Ibo Island is a pleasant place, occupied by a cohort of silversmiths who produce finely-wrought jewellery. But for most of its more than two hundred-year history, the fort was a site of violence and oppression: the clanging sounds would have been caused by shackles and iron bars; the smoke would have risen from guns and canons; the voices would have been screams and moans.

Built by the Portuguese in 1791 as a military bastion to ward off the Dutch – from whom they had wrestled control of the Mozambican trade routes, after ousting Arab traders from the region some two centuries before that – the Fort subsequently served as a slave house and then a prison in which many of those who opposed colonial rule were detained and tortured. Its star-shaped, pentagonal building is the most recognisable structure on Ibo, and it is the island’s most potent symbol. Indeed, its changing fortunes have mirrored the shifting historical tides shaping life on the island.

Ibo is part of the Quirimbas archipelago, situated off the north-east coast of Mozambique. It was a strategically significant location for Portugal’s imperial ambitions, but remained a fairly isolated outpost and developed its own particular cultural flavour. As with the rest of Mozambique, Portuguese is a lingua franca, but locals greet each other with “Salama”, a linguistic reminder that there was an Arab settlement on Ibo in the twelfth century (Arab and Chinese trading posts were established along the coastline of the mainland as early as 600AD).

Ibo is one of those places that constantly feels like it’s falling down – as if its buildings are crumbling into the sand and the sea. Nowhere is this more evident than in the ghostly streets of what used to be the island’s wealthy areas, which are lined with the hollow shells of houses that were abandoned overnight when the post-independence government more or less expelled all ‘foreigners’ in 1975. This lends the island an evocative charm; but, of course, such slow degeneration is only romantic to temporary sojourners and holidaymakers. For those who live on Ibo, the lack of socio-economic opportunity is a serious problem.

Yet the island’s great appeal to adventurous travellers is also its saving grace. The Quirimbas are, to put it frankly, an exquisitely beautiful natural formation: warm azure seas, dazzling coral reefs, abundant sea life ... in short, a tropical paradise. A number of the small land masses are uninhabited or private islands. Not so on Ibo, where the permanent population numbers some 4,000 – and the jobs available are limited.

For this reason, the silversmiths’ combined workshop-and-showroom at the fort is a welcome intervention. And, while the artisan-artists who practice their craft there are simply continuing an ancient Ibo tradition of producing fine metalwork, the growth of jewellery production as a means of employment is largely attributable to Fiona and Kevin Record, the owners of Ibo Island Lodge.

When they first sailed into the harbour at Ibo some fifteen years ago, the Records did not intend to stay for long. The magic of the place soon captured them, however, and they decided to settle on Ibo and open the lodge. The logistical challenges of doing so were appreciable, but Fiona and Kevin’s resolve held firm; the beautifully understated coral-and-limestone lodge buildings they renovated are testimony to their determination. Since then, they’ve profited from bringing visitors to the island, but they have also ensured that they demonstrate their gratitude to the people of Ibo by creating jobs.

“Part of Ibo’s charm,” notes Fiona, “was that it had fallen into decline, and harboured a history, culture and marine world totally unexplored. The area’s pristine beauty and the hospitality of the local people had a profound effect on us. We made a commitment to create a tourism project that would positively affect the lives of the impoverished community on Ibo.”

The silversmith venture is just one of various initiatives introduced by the Records as part of that commitment. In addition to employing forty staff (each of whom, it is estimated, supports twenty other people), the lodge is the centre of numerous community schemes that aim to provide both income and development opportunities. There is a Montessori school for the island’s children, as well as an adult education facility that offers English teaching, tourism awareness and training in conservation, gardening and guiding.

Complementing this concern for the inhabitants of Ibo is a strong ecological imperative – ultimately, the more jobs there are that don’t depend on fishing, the better for the increasingly overtaxed marine environment of this World Heritage Site. Along with a host of impossibly-coloured fish, underwater life in the Quirimbas includes a variety of turtles, sharks and rays; but they, like the birds overhead that are an equally vital part of the ecosystem (there are ten red-listed species in the Ibo area), are threatened by the sheer numbers of people whose livelihood is fishing.

Taking all these factors into consideration, Ibo Island Lodge offers guests something that most accommodation establishments cannot.

Yes, there are the bright and richly-furnished rooms; there is the veranda view between palms and bougainvillea blossoms out to sea; activities include kayaking through mangroves, snorkelling and dhow sailing; low tide brings an opportunity to have lunch on a sandbar surrounded by nothing but crystal blue ocean; and each day ends with sundowners on the roof, listening to the deep beat of humpback whales striking their tail-fins against the surface of the water.

As gratifying as any of these, however, is the sense that a visit to Ibo is not a one-sided affair in which only the tourist benefits. As much as fifty percent of the island’s population is positively affected by the presence of Ibo Island Lodge. Now that’s responsible tourism.

www.iboisland.co.za