| COFI:FT/VIII/2002/11
|
| COFI:FT/VIII/2002/11
|
COMMITTEE ON FISHERIES |
SUB-COMMITTEE ON FISH TRADE |
Eighth Session |
Bremen, Germany, 12-16 February 2002 |
COFI SUB-COMMITTEE ON FISH TRADE AS INTERNATIONAL COMMODITY BODY AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COMMON FUND FOR COMMODITIES |
SUGGESTED ACTION BY THE SUB-COMMITTEE
INFOPESCA: Consolidation and expansion of artisanal fish production for export in Central America
INFOPESCA: Loan Financing of value-added Fish Production in Rio Grande and Mar del Plata
INFOFISH: Loan Financing of Value-added Fish Production in Bangladesh
INFOFISH: Value Added Fish Products from Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia
INFOYU: Value Added Fish Products from China
INFOPECHE: Development of production and marketing of small pelagic fish from Mauritania and Guinea
INFOPECHE: Assistance to the SADC region
INFOPECHE: Marketing information services and surveys
EUROFISH: Improving the competitiveness of SMEs in the fish processing sector in Bulgaria
1. The COFI Sub-Committee on Fish Trade was designated as the International Commodity Body (ICB) for fishery products by the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) in February 1991 and was therefore in a position to sponsor fishery commodity research and development projects to be supported under the Fund's second account. The Sub-Committee assumed the role of Supervisory Body.
2. Seven fishery commodity related projects have been approved by CFC since its inception. The first, executed by INFOPECHE became operational in May 1995 and terminated in December 1998. The INFOFISH project executed in Bangladesh started implementation in the last quarter of 1996 and terminated in December 1999. These two projects terminated already before the last COFI Sub-Committee Meeting; therefore they will not be described in length.
3. The project "Technical information services for smallholder fisheries and promotion of international trade" (PEA: INFOSAMAK), in addition to development of value added products and their promotion, training in quality assurance and identification of investment opportunities, seeks to improve smallholder fish production and aquaculture. It will also strengthen the capacity of the INFOSAMAK Centre. A Quality Assurance training workshop was held in Yemen in early 1997 financed by the DANIDA funded Project GCP/INT/609/DEN, but full implementation of the project could only commence after INFOSAMAK's re-location to Morocco in March 2001. The project started implementation in October 2001.
4. Similar to the - already completed - INFOPECHE and INFOFISH projects, the project "Rehabilitation and development of the seafood processing industry in Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil) and Mar del Plata (Argentina)" (PEA: INFOPESCA) is oriented towards value-added product development and the implementation of Quality Control system and the development of HACCP plans. There is a substantial difference between the former two projects and the INFOPESCA one, as this covers regional and domestic markets. Eight companies in Mar del Plata and two companies in Rio Grande do Sul participated in the project. The project was successful in carrying out its activities and terminated in November 2001 with a strong dissemination component.
5. The project "Production and marketing of value-added fishery products in Eastern Africa" (PEA: COMESA/Lake Victoria Fisheries Organization) aims to develop and promote production of improved processed and value-added products from inland waters (Nile Perch and dagaa). Activities involve, according the different products and species, small-scale cottage enterprises, many of which are run by women, and more structured industrial processing companies. The project was approved by the Executive Board of the CFC in October 1999 and was launched in January 2002. Full implementation starts in spring 2002.
6. The project "Promotion of processing and marketing of value-added tuna products from island countries in the Asia-Pacific" (PEA: INFOFISH) is carried out in the Maldives and Papua New Guinea. It aims at the promotion of export processing and domestic marketing of value-added tuna products from island countries in the Asia-Pacific through the promotion of marketing and export, adaptation and transfer of technologies for processing and presentation, promotion of investment in ventures for processing and marketing and dissemination of technology and information in the two target countries and in other relevant developing countries in the region. The project was approved by the Executive Board of the CFC in April 2001 and the project was launched in November 2001. Full implementation will start in spring 2002.
7. The project "Development of processing and marketing of tilapia produced in big Latin American river basins" (PEA: INFOPESCA) will concentrate on the promotion of tilapia quality and marketing, product development and internal marketing. The project was approved by the Executive Board of the CFC in October 2001 and will start full implementation in mid 2002. This project already foresees a loan financing component to be designed during the later part of the technical phase.
8. Project identification, formulation and execution benefit from prior experience. The INFOFISH and the INFOPESCA projects benefited from experiences and lessons learnt from the first pilot activities in The Gambia. INFOFISH has been able to encourage a more collaborative approach between participating companies, with each one concentrating on perfecting different but compatible value-added products. An important part of the INFOPESCA project were training programmes for fish factory workers in quality and hygiene.
9. The completed projects received a positive evaluation by the CFC. An important role in this success was played by the expertise available in INFOPECHE, INFOFISH and INFOPESCA in the field of post harvest activities in fisheries, fish handling, fish marketing, fish processing and quality control. The close collaboration of all INFOservices under the FISH INFOnetwork umbrella also helped to disseminate the results of the projects to the other INFOservices and to all member countries of the network.
10. For full advantage to be taken of the momentum created in ongoing CFC funded fisheries related projects, it is important that - now that the CFC has finalised its lending plan and guidelines - investment projects for the private sector will start soon in Bangladesh, Brazil and/or Argentina, countries were the technical assistance has been carried out successfully.
11. It will be noted that FAO's role in the execution of CFC funded projects is different from that in United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) or trust fund financed projects. All CFC projects relate directly to promotion of the private sector with the direct participation of private firms in concert with the national government. At the same time the capacities of the PEAs are strengthened through experience gained in executing these projects. While the official role of FAO is that of the "Supervisory Body", substantial professional staff time is spent in assisting and advising PEAs in the execution of their projects. FAO created an Expert Group to advise the Sub-Committee in its supervisory function with the terms of reference agreed during the last COFI Sub-Committee Meeting.
12. In view of CFC's desire to see a substantial level of co-financing of projects, efforts have been made to interest other donors. The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) participated in two projects and FAO Programmes (trust fund projects and technical cooperation projects) have also supported CFC projects.
13. The Sub-Committee is requested to comment on progress made so far and in particular on future orientations for project activities. The Sub-Committee is requested to suggest additional avenues to be followed in the identification of possible co-financing sources. Members are requested to comment on and endorse the pipeline projects presented in Annex I and to present further project ideas or profiles for consideration.
In many countries in Central America, including Guatemala and Honduras, artisanal fisheries co-operatives are well structured and active, but lack the facilities at landing sites for unloading, handling and storing high quality fish which could be exported directly by them in fresh or processed form to markets in the USA or Europe. In addition such organizations have not been able to obtain the formal training and technical assistance which will enable them officially to comply with mandatory international standards, including HACCP for processed products, and so qualify for official "approval" to export to major world markets where considerable potential for their products exists. The project will contribute to improved development, incomes and standards of living in the artisanal fishing communities in general and in rural fishing communities in particular. It will contribute to improved export earnings for participating countries and ensure improved availability and equitable distribution of fish for human consumption within the sub region.
Project duration 36 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating co-operatives, co-financing agencies): US$ 2 000 000
The technical project "Rehabilitation and Development of the Seafood Processing Industry in Rio Grande and Mar del Plata" executed by INFOPESCA and financed by CFC, undertakes market research, production trials of value-added fishery products and training in quality assurance, in collaboration with private sector entrepreneurs in Argentina and Brazil as detailed earlier in this document. The proposed loan financing project will include design of specific investment proposals, inventory of existing machinery, loan financing of machinery and other hardware purchases.
Project duration: 36 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 5 600 000.
The technical project "Export Promotion of Value-added Fishery Products and their Sustainable Development" executed by INFOFISH and financed by CFC, undertook market research, production trials of value-added fishery products and training in quality assurance, in collaboration with private sector entrepreneurs in Bangladesh as detailed earlier in this document. The proposed loan financing project will include design of specific investment proposals, inventory of existing machinery, loan financing of machinery and other hardware purchases.
Project duration: 24 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 4 300 000.
This project aims at improving the potential earnings of small-scale fisherfolks through better handling of fish landed and better marketing towards local and export markets.
Project duration: 36 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 800 000.
This project aims at improving the income of fishermen through development of value-added products.
Project duration: 36 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 800 000
This project aims at improving the potential earnings of small-scale fisherfolks through better handling of fish landed and better marketing towards local and export markets. The CFC has approved a preparatory mission to prepare the project idea.
Project duration: 36 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 800 000
This project aims at facilitating the development links within SADC with respect to fish trade. In addition it will facilitate the access to global markets, which will have positive effects on intra- regional trade and offer a better balance of products in the consumer markets
Project duration: 36 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 486 000
Reliable market information is a key ingredient of successful trade development for fish and fishery product. It is also one of primary problems for exporters and producers in developing countries. The projects aims at maintaining an adequate level and high quality and relevant International market information to fish sector of INFOPECHE member countries and their potential overseas partners as necessary for everyday business decision. It will provide orientation for government institutions and private companies in the INFOPECHE region, and their potential partners with regard to particular trade opportunities and market trends to facilitate forward planning.
Project duration: 60 months
Estimated total cost (CFC, participating enterprises, bilateral assistance and government agencies and Intergovernmental Organizations): US$ 1 290 000.
The importance of small enterprises in the Bulgarian economy remains high. More than 90% of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) appear to be enterprises with less than 10 employees and in 1998 more than half of total employment was in SMEs. However, the competitiveness of these businesses is poor, especially within the wider European context. The fisheries sector is small but expanding, but assistance is needed to improve the competitiveness of entrepreneurs in the fish processing sector so they can offer the right products to the large European market. The government is moving towards providing a more enabling environment for SMEs and thus the time is right for SMEs to capitalise on the new opportunities.
This project will focus on providing SMEs with assistance to get the right products to the right markets, and includes:
Counterpart agencies could include the Bulgaria Agency for SMEs (under the Council of Ministers) and the Swiss Import Promotion Programme.
Estimated total cost: US$ 550 000
