1. Fishing for a Secure Future: Opportunities for Reforming Fisheries Governance
Robert Pomeroy
University of Connecticut-Avery Point
and
Patrick Christie
University of Washington
Title too wordy. Delete. Branding slide.

2. Presentation Outline Why Care About Fisheries Issues and Threats
US Foreign Assistance Framework
Recommendations and Opportunities
Want to leave time for feedback

3. Purpose of Assessment
Identify specific opportunities for investment in near-shore small-scale marine and freshwater capture fisheries to encourage:
economic growth
democracy and governance
poverty reduction
food and livelihood security
biodiversity conservation
Regions: ANE, AFR, LAC
AID commissioned, but intended to inform the wider development community
Highlight
Coll
Improve management of fisheries to enhance conservation, ecosystem health and productivity
Contribute to one or more of the Agency’s major mandates, initiatives or focal areas

4. Methodology Literature-based research (not a GAP analysis)
Stakeholder consultations
USAID operating units
U.S. government agencies (such as State, NOAA, DOI)
NGOs
International organizations and donor community
Universities
Collective experience of the report team
Not a gap analysis consider all efforts by other donors

5. Assessment Team Patrick Christie – Co-team leader
Robert Pomeroy – Co-team leader
Gene Helfman – University of Georgia
Brian Crawford – University of Rhode Island
Nancy Diamond – Diamond Consulting
Tom Grasso - WWF
Gareth Porter - WWF
Don Jackson – Mississippi State University
Ann Gordon – WorldFish Center
Patrick Dugan – WorldFish Center
Catrin Egerton – WorldFish Center
Adaoma Wosu – WorldFish Center
Natan Vinhateiro – WorldFish Center

6. Why Care About Small-Scale Fisheries?

7. Importance of Fisheries to Developing Countries
1.5 billion people depend upon fish for food, income & livelihood
2.6 billion people receive more that 20% of their animal protein from fish, compared to 8% in developed countries
Up to 50% of animal protein in some countries
Fisheries contribute to:
Secure livelihoods (commercial & small-scale/artisanal)
Human health (food security and nutrition)
Economic and community development
Regional & international trade, export earnings
Environmental health and biodiversity conservation
Security
Reduce words

8. Importance of Fisheries to Developing Countries
Fish are the most heavily traded food commodity and fastest growing international “agricultural” commodity
Developing countries provide 77% of global fishing production
Supply-demand relationship is “south” to “north”
Net exports of fish in 2002 earned $17.4 billion in foreign exchange for developing countries
Greater than combined net exports of rice, coffee, sugar & tea!

9. Small-Scale Fisheries
Labor-intensive, non-mechanized, small boats, traditional fishing gear
Activities take place nearshore during trips of one day or less
Small-scale fishers account for 96% of the world’s fishers
They catch 58% of the global fish catch
12-50 million men and women are estimated to be directly involved in small-scale capture fisheries (full-time, increasingly part-time, seasonal)
87% of world’s fishers are in the Asia-Pacific region
At least 20% of those employed in fisheries earn < $1/day
Far more people have become involved in fishing than agriculture since 1950 (total growth rate of 400% vs. 35%)
Wide range of estimates of numbers of fishers

10. Small-Scale Fisheries
50 Million people directly employed
People involved in fisheries-related occupations: 150 M
Fishing household dependents: 250 M
Annual catch for food is M tons
Large-Scale Fisheries
500,000 people directly employed
People involved in fisheries-related occupations: 1.0 M
Fishing household dependents: 2.0 M
Annual catch for food is Million tons

11. Gender & Fisheries:
Fishing (and gleaning) part of a household livelihood strategy
Wide range of men’s & women’s fisheries occupations (e.g., catching, growing, processing, trading)
Household gender division of labor – varies by place
Women’s and girl’s contributions less often recognized

12. Trends
Capture fisheries are in a state of decline that began in the 1980s (and earlier for some fisheries)
Causes: overfishing, habitat loss and other environmental degradation
Example: South and SE Asia demersal stocks have been fished down to 5–30% of unexploited levels & 88% of SE Asia coral reefs are threatened by human activities
Impacts: Livelihoods and employment, reduced incomes, vulnerability to poverty, food security and nutrition, export revenue, loss of resource rent, social stability and security

13. Importance of Fisheries to Developing Countries
Decline in per capita availability and increasing prices leading to a widening gap between supply and demand, and disproportionate impact on developing countries & the poor
Capture fisheries may not meet the increasing global demand for seafood products (1.5% annually through 2020 and 2% annually for Asia) unless:
Improved resource management
Sustainable aquaculture

14. Marine and Freshwater Biodiversity
Serious threats to fisheries from declining levels of aquatic biodiversity
Serious threats to biodiversity from poorly managed fisheries
Developing countries have the most significant areas of marine and freshwater biodiversity and fisheries

15. Areas of Significant Marine Biodiversity and Fisheries
Highest diversity of marine fish species is the Indo-Malay-Philippines Archipelago
Global center of marine fish biodiversity is the central Philippine islands
A second center or “peak” between peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra

17. Freshwater Biodiversity and Fisheries
Latin America: Amazon River system
Richest fish fauna in the world, 3,000+ species, with at least 30 different families represented
SE Asia: Mekong River Basin
Largest SE Asia river with a fish diversity upwards of 1,700 species
Sub-Saharan Africa: Rift Valley Lakes & Congo River Basin
Support similarly high numbers of fish species

19. Issues and Threats: Weak Governance
Overfishing and excess fishing capacity
Open access
Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing
Lack of information
Enforcement and compliance
Low participation in decision making
Conflict
Weak management institutions and corruption
Inappropriate policies

20. Issues and Threats: Socioeconomic Conditions
Poverty
Poorly managed globalization of trade and market access
Technological advances
Rapid population growth
Health: HIV AIDS, nutrition
Political and economic marginalization
Gender inequity and inequality
Population: migration and births

21. Issues and Threats: Large Ecosystem Changes
Climate change: SLR, elevated SST, acidification
Habitat loss and pollution (coastal development)
Removal of key species, introduction of exotics
Altered freshwater inflows
PC comment: Give example, data? See Caribbean.
See Reefs at Risk?

22. Opportunities in Small-Scale Fisheries
The fisheries sector has great potential to contribute to poverty reduction and economic growth
Moderate scope for increased benefits to poor fishers and consumers and resource rents to society, with responsible & equitable governance
Some indication that fishing is no longer the “employment of last resort,” and that fishing households are actively diversifying livelihoods.
Increasing successes with a range of new management approaches

23. Management Responses Ecosystem-based management
Integrated coastal management
Precautionary approach
Adaptive management
Stakeholder participation via co-management & CBNRM
Rights-based management (use rights & limiting access)
Marine protected areas
“Data less” management in information-limited situations
Markets and certification
Livelihoods approach

24. Strategy Address underlying factors of vulnerability
Build resilience of fishing communities
Understand the diversity of fisheries
Utilized in a cross-sectoral manner to address the complexity of issues and threats

25. Relationship of Fisheries to the New U.S. Foreign Assistance Framework
Framework Goal:
Helping to build and sustain democratic, well-governed states that respond to the needs of their people and conduct themselves responsibly in the international system.

26. Fisheries & the Framework Components
1. Governing Justly and Democratically
Weak governance
Enforcement problems
Lack of stakeholder participation in decision-making
2. Economic Growth
Political and economic marginalization
Trade and market access
Loss of economic rents
Poverty and livelihoods
Threats within the framework

27. Fisheries & the Framework Components
3. Peace and Security
Maritime security
“Leaky borders” (piracy, smuggling)
Conflict and “fish wars”
4. Investing in People
Food security, nutrition, health (HIV/AIDS)
Rapid population growth
Loss of biodiversity and ecosystem health
5. Humanitarian Assistance
Vulnerability to disaster

28. Small-Scale Fisheries and US Government Leadership
A new fisheries initiative:
SECURE FISHING COMMUNITIES
and
SUSTAINABILITY
Dealing with fish, communities, security (food, envir, peace and order)

29. Recommendations National Regional Global
Strategies and impacts are at community level

30. National Assistance Overview
Improve assessment capacity
Reform fisheries governance
Reduce excess fishing capacity and improve access management
Reduce IUU fishing
Develop human and institutional capacity
Build appropriate trade capacity
Conserve biodiversity for enhanced &
sustained productivity

31. National: Improve Assessment Capacity
Work with governments to conduct national assessment of small-scale fisheries leading to national fisheries and development plans
Assess characteristics and state of fishers and fisheries, socio-economics & gender analysis, current policies, etc.
Use information as platform for developing appropriate policies and monitoring change over time
Consistent, but flexible approach that is context relevant
Socio-ecological approach

32. National: Reform Fisheries Governance
Changing the mindset:
Acknowledge overfishing & build political and public will for reform
Moving from production orientation to sustainable management
Manage access
Manage different types of fisheries in an integrated manner, especially for shared stocks
Improved governance is fundamental issue. The rest flows from this.

33. National: Reform Fisheries Governance
Encourage transparency and accountability
Reduce corruption
Promote co-management including women and minorities
Sustainable fisheries concept encoded in law
Integrate fisheries with other sectors and planning processes
Build alliances with private sector & other partners
Adaptive management
No one size fits all. Context is important.

34. National: Reduce excess fishing capacity
National and local plans of action
Managing access to fisheries resources
Alternative livelihoods to support transition out of fishery sector

35. National: Develop Human and Institutional Capacity
Developing champions for sustainable fisheries within government
Reform fisheries education
Create lifelong learning opportunities for government policy makers and technicians, both women and men
Institutional reform
CRSP: Educational opportunities at US higher education institutions
Use skills transfer approach to technical assistance
Institutional reform: Reallocation of responsibilities, incentives
Intent is not to ignore NGOs, but to focus where there is greatest need.

36. National: Build Appropriate Trade Capacity
Improve phyto-sanitary measures
Increase value of fisheries products via processing, improving value chains, increasing competitiveness
Engaging women traders in market and trade reforms
Ensure that international trade does not undermine local food security
Can result in reduced fishing effort and better food security

37. National: Conserve biodiversity for enhanced & sustained productivity
Mainstream conservation policies
Maintaining ecosystem health and functions
Move toward ecosystem-based management as appropriate
Protect critical habitats, reproductive capacity, food webs, water quality and quantity
Tools: Marine protected areas, zoning, fishing effort control, encourage selective fishing gear, CITES listing, impact assessment of exotic species introductions, etc.
Not the only reason to conserve biodiversity.
(but not at risk of undermining other social goals and community-based processes)

38. Example: The Philippines
PROJECT FISH (
Increased fish stocks through ecosystem-based fisheries management
Tools:
Fishing effort regulation
Marine protected area networks
Monitoring (scientific & participatory); progress metrics
Improved enforcement
Next steps:
Regional scaling up
National educational program
Example of where there has been considerable USAID investment

39. Example: Nicaragua/Honduras
Reform of spiny lobster & conch fisheries
Create public-private sector alliance (governments, restaurant chains, importers and exporters, NGOs, foundations)
Consider moving toward certification scheme
Link to US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)
Place without much fisheries work

40. Regional Transboundary fisheries management
Regional workshops for donor coordination and sharing lessons learned
Transboundary fisheries management
Overall regional focus: 1) capacity development for AID mission and government personnel, 2) networking to aid national-level efforts, and 3) projects to address issues that cross national borders.
See Grasso’s comments – look at
Ann Gordon
This review, including information gained through key informant interviews, suggests that although USAID has not made inland fisheries a key focus in Africa, together with its partners, it does has considerable experience and arguably comparative advantage in:
transboundary programs, supported through regional funding mechanisms
multi-country, basin-wide integrated water resource management programs
integrated development and conservation programs
the promotion of public-private partnerships around development and conservation, and
marshalling research resources to address development issues (from both its own academic institutes/museums and from other countries).
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For Inland Fisheries:
Improving fisheries governance and defining resource access, in particular for the poor
Enhancing productivity through post harvest management
Sustaining production through integrated water resource management.
Supporting transboundary management
Improving market access, in particular for small-scale producers, processors and traders
Promoting enterprise development through enabling institutions and policy frameworks
Strengthening consideration of inland fisheries in national and regional policies and actions on food security

41. Global: Alliance Development
Energize donor interest in small-scale fisheries
Public-private partnerships
Two emerging alliances:
PROFISH/World Bank
Resilient Small-Scale Fisheries Campaign/World Fish Center
Should mention specifics?
Requires careful consideration
Public-private partnerships: ensuring sources
Collaboration with NGOs, foundations

42. USG Leadership: Presidential Initiative
Justification: US Commission of Ocean Policy and US Administrative Response called for leadership on sustainable fisheries
Build from globally recognized USG leadership in:
Integrated approaches
Capacity development
Integrated science
Improving governance
Build coalition around secure fishing communities and sustainability