Artisanal fisher folk from Vezo community in Madagascar. Photo ©Garth Cripps/ Blue Ventures 2016

12 December 2016, Port Louis – The Indian Ocean Commission (IOC), in collaboration with the Southern African Development Community (SADC), with support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), is this week hosting a regional meeting on the implementation of the voluntary guidelines for securing sustainable small-scale fisheries in the context of food security and poverty alleviation (SSF Guidelines). After a global consultation process for the elaboration of this first ever international instrument dedicated to artisanal fisheries, stakeholders will be discussing modalities and identifying priorities for its implementation in the region.

The discussions will, among other topics, focus on sharing lessons from past and ongoing initiatives aimed at improving the management of small-scale fisheries and enhancing their value chains, in a regional context, and prioritise areas of focus for the Action Plan. In the Southern and the Indian Ocean region, artisanal fishermen occupy 90 percent of the fisheries sector.

“In the 5 IOC member states, fishing is one of the five largest contributors to GDP. It represents close to 130,000 direct jobs, mainly in the artisanal sector, to which are added the indirect jobs that it generates. Artisanal fisheries account for 40 percent of tuna production in the region.

The fisheries sector in the SADC Region contributes an average of about 2 percent to the SADC GDP, with total average exports worth of USD152 million and average imports of USD100 million. The sector employs an average of 145 000 people, of which more than a million benefit indirectly.

We are expecting that participants will come up with a regional Action Plan to better address small-scale fisheries issues in the context of our new Fisheries and Aquaculture Strategy 2015-2025,” said Madi Hamada, the Indian Ocean Commission Secretary General at this meeting

Recognizing the importance of the small-scale fisheries sector to the economies of the region, and its present and potential contribution to poverty reduction and food security objectives, IOC and SADC have convened this important meeting in order to familiarize a variety of stakeholders with the content of the guidelines and receive guidance from participants on how to address priority issues in the framework of their own fisheries strategies.

“Fish is one of the most traded foods in the world, including the SADC region. Fisheries and aquaculture are not only a source of employment and economic wealth but also play a significant role in the food security of our countries,” said Motseki Hlatshwayo,Technical Advisor at theSADC Secretariat.

The meeting brings together government representatives, socio-professional associations representing the small-scale fisheries sector, civil society organizations as well as a range of supporting organizations (regional bodies, research institutes, NGOs, etc.) from the 17 Member States of IOC and SADC combined.

“By applying the principles of human rights set out in the Guidelines, we will also be able to make progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,” said Patrice Talla Takoukam, FAO Representative for Madagascar, Comoros, Mauritius, Seychelles

At the end of the four-day meeting, fisheries organizations will establish the founding stones of a regional road map which will certainly become a historical reference to the sector in its pursue of human rights, food and nutritional security in the region

Note for editors

These Voluntary guidelines, adopted by the FAO Committee of Fisheries in 2014, are based on international human rights standards and responsible fisheries standards and practices. In general, the SSF Guidelines defines that artisanal fishers communities need to have their territorial rights secured; considering the important role they play in the conservation of aquatic ecosystems and implementation of sustainability measures in long-term; these communities should be centrally included in management discussions; fish workers should be part of social security policies; the role fish-chain should be acknowledged when implementing public policies, particularly the critically important role of women; fishers should have adequate quality of life, avoiding abusive work conditions and enhancing their occupational health and security, amongst others.

To know more about the SSF Voluntary Guidelines: http://bit.ly/SSF_FAO