The CSO platform comprises the International Planning Committee for Food Sovereignty (IPC), Centro Internazionale Crocevia (CIC), the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF), the World Forum of Fisher People (WFFP) and the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fishworkers (WFF). These organizations have come together to participate as partners in the development of the International Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries being led by the FAO.
They have been involved with the process since its inception in 2008 at the Global Conference on Small-Scale Fisheries – Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries: Bringing together responsible fisheries and social development.
Their joint submission is attached, and below.
Partnering for implementation
The Civil Society fisheries platform established by the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fishworkers (WFF), the World Forum of Fisher People (WFFP), the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) and the International CSO Planning Committee on Food Sovereignty is committed to engaging in the implementation of the guidelines, both as a platform and through the individual organizations and their members.
We see ourselves as a vital partner in the process of implementing the ssf guidelines.
This will require considerable planning, cooperation and coordination, including obtaining the necessary financial support, capacity building of our respective organizations and recruitment of staff.
We see our role as complimentary to and in support of the work of statal organisations and of intergovernmental organizations, to be undertaken both at the policy decision taking level and at the grass roots community level.
A critical aspect is ensuring the incorporation of a human rights based approach into fisheries policies, and achieving coherence between social, economic, trade, agriculture, industrial and other policies with fisheries, where our CSOs have an important monitoring and advocacy role to play.
How do you see the role of your organization and others in the implementation of the SSF Guidelines?
Regarding the role of our organizations
We will work to create awareness about small-scale fisheries and the enormous actual and potential social, economic, environmental, cultural, nutritional and other contributions of this sector, and its importance as a way of life.
Our organizations will actively summarise, translate and disseminate simplified and condensed versions of the SSF Guidelines. With fishing communities we will work to create awareness about the Guidelines at different levels, including by preparing training modules, organizing workshops and facilitating training and capacity building, particularly for leaders of fisheries organizations and at the community level, on how to use the Guidelines to secure sustainable small-scale fisheries. We will draw attention to how the Guidelines can be used to support ongoing struggles of fishing communities (to access water bodies, to prevent grabbing of their resources, etc.).
We will work to create awareness of the Guidelines amongst policy makers, international and intergovernmental organizations and the research community.
We will work with the FAO to promote implementation of the SSF Guidelines at regional and national levels.
We will seek the active implementation of the Guidelines at the national and local levels, and their adoption in policy and legislation.
In terms of others with key roles:
The most critical role is that of the local and national governments. They must demonstrate the political will and take the initiative of aligning policy, legislation and practice with the SSF Guidelines, in close consultation with small-scale fisheries groups.
Intergovernmental organizations, particularly the FAO (and its member States), have a vital role in raising awareness about the Guidelines, seeking resources for their implementation, fostering partnerships for implementation, putting in place transparent and accountable systems to monitor their implementation, ensuring that small-scale fisheries organizations are part of decision making and implementation arrangements etc.
All UN bodies (including for example the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights and the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food) have an important role in supporting and monitoring the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. The Committee on World Food Security (CFS) has a special role given the importance of small-scale fisheries for food security. Organizations like IFAD have an important role in supporting the development of capacity of small-scale fisheries organizations.
Research groups have a role in ensuring that research undertaken helps highlight the importance of supporting SSF, and suggest appropriate and practical steps needed to support the sector etc. It is important that the research community partners with small-scale fisheries groups in an ethical manner, with an emphasis on participatory research that also meets the needs of local communities.
Media organizations have an important role in creating awareness about issues facing small-scale fisheries and the need to implement the SSF Guidelines.
How can partnerships be fostered and strengthened to include the ‘voices of the marginalized?
Given that the SSF Guidelines seek to address issues of poverty alleviation and food security in the context of small-scale fisheries, the active participation of men and women of small-scale fishing communities, particularly marginalized and vulnerable groups among them, in all aspects of decision making and their implementation, is vital. Fishing community organizations must prepare for this role, including by strengthening their own organizations and their capacity to engage and seek change, and by partnering with other social movements and organizations representing food producer groups, possibly through such channels as the mechanism provided by by the International CSO Planning Committee (IPC) for food sovereignty. Full support needs to be extended by all (including policy makers and intergovernmental organizations) to enable this process of strengthening of small-scale fisheries organizations (including women's organizations). If the voices of the marginalized are to be effectively reflected (and not just in a token manner) this is essential.
Partnerships are critical to the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. Small-scale fisheries groups must be an integral part of such partnerships, including with national and local governments. On their part, national and local governments and other organizations partnering for implementation, must actively seek to consult with small-scale fisheries groups and ensure their active role in decision making.
All efforts at monitoring implementation of the Guidelines must specifically seek information from all those in the partnership about the participation of small-scale fisheries groups (men and women) in implementation and decision making.
A group which is particularly and vulnerable, and whose voice is not being heard clearly in the policy decision processes is youth. Appropriate platforms and communications need to be developed that enable young people from fishing communities to engage in the implementation of the ssf guidelines. They are the future, and are crucial in the struggle to secure sustainable livelihoods from fisheries and sustaining the culture, traditions and presence of fishing communities.
What will be required at local, national, regional and global levels to ensure effective and efficient partnerships?
At the international level, a coordination mechanism will need to be established, with participation of intergovernmental organization such as the FAO and IFAD, donor organizations, social movements and other CSOs, research bodies, supporting governments, etc. FAO could play an anchoring role in any such mechanism. It should be ensured that this mechanism is accountable and transparent, and that it retains flexibility in its functioning (is not unduly bureaucratic). The effective representation of small-scale fisheries organizations in this body must be ensured, including by making available resources.
Similar co-ordination mechanisms at the regional levels will be useful, to ensure better regional implementation of Guidelines.
Partnerships are vital at the national level if the Guidelines are to be implemented. It is essential to set up a coordination body for implementation of the Guidelines, in which national and local governments, policy makers, small-scale fisheries organizations as well as NGOs, researchers and the media are represented. The effective representation of small-scale fisheries organizations in this body must be ensured, including by making available resources and enhancing the capacity of such organizations to participate in this body. The political will to support such processes is vital.
Monitoring the implementation of the Guidelines must be inbuilt into the roles of the coordination mechanisms set up, whether at international, regional or national levels.
Resources need to be made available to facilitate interactions between different partners (at various levels) to identify the role that each partner can best play in implementing the Guidelines, and in monitoring and evaluation.
Information and communication – promoting experience sharing and collaboration
What best practices with regard to communication would you recommend for SSF Guidelines implementation at local, national, regional and global level?
Many countries already have legislation or policy measures in place to support small-scale fisheries. Such examples need to be documented and widely shared. The experience of fishing communities in managing resources, getting recognition of their rights to resources, being part of organizations that have protected their economic or socio-cultural interests, also need to be documented and shared. Also to be shared are examples (including methodologies) of participatory research that has effectively supported small-scale fisheries etc. It is also important to share positive experiences of implementation of the Guidelines, and the impact this has had on the wellbeing of fishing communities.
It is essential that such examples be communicated in effective and innovative ways, keeping in mind the need for dissemination to small-scale fisheries organizations and communities. Direct sharing of experiences (exchange programmes), preparation of videos in local languages, use of social media etc, apart from written documents/ pamphlets/reports, should be considered. Availability of material in local languages is vital. A dedicated website to share positive examples of national and local level implementation may be considered. Exposure visits between communities as a tool to share positive experiences is very effective and such visits must be facilitated.
What are your experiences from participatory monitoring and evaluation?
So far there are few such experiences that we are aware of for participatory monitoring and evaluation of fisheries policies, legislation and initiatives. However, if the Guidelines are to be effectively implemented, participatory monitoring and evaluations systems are vital. It is extremely vital that small-scale fisheries organizations and other CSOs are part of such systems. It is equally important to provide mandated space for small-scale fisheries organizations and other CSOs to take up independent processes for monitoring and evaluation on implementation initiatives at national and local levels, and to submit reports on their observations.
How can progress in implementing the SSF Guidelines be measured and reported in a useful way?
Measuring progress
To gauge progress it is important that key, selected baseline data is compiled before implementation is initiated. This could include data on the socio-economic status of fishing communities, the extent and manner in which they are organized, representation of women in organizations, conditions of work etc. It will then be possible to measure what has been achieved during implementation. (In many countries such data may not be available and the production of such data in the course of implementation should be a basic requirement and indicator of progress).
It would be important to undertake a gap analysis (comparing policies and legislation in the country, with the guidance provided in the Guidelines).
Which gaps need to be addressed and how should be decided through a collective participatory process. This should be the framework against which implementation of the Guidelines is measured. Indicators to gauge progress will need to be accordingly prepared.
Reporting
In terms of reporting, it is important that a systematic and periodic process of reporting is put in place at the national, regional and international levels. It is important that such reporting is also made mandatory by the FAO committee on Fisheries (COFI) and the FAO regional conferences (given how important implementation of these Guidelines are to achieving the objectives of the FAO related to food security, sustainable livelihoods and poverty alleviation). It is important that such reporting is also required by the CFS. Reports submitted by national governments must be made freely available. National governments should make all efforts to make reports available in local languages. COFI should also seek reports on implementation from CSOs engaged with, or following, the implementation process (parallel reports).
Meaningful forums (at regional and national levels) to discuss reports on implementation should be organized, to share good experiences and to discuss ways to improve implementation. FAO regional offices may be tasked with organizing such forums. Small-scale fisheries organizations and other CSOs must necessarily be part of such forums, and their porposals on how implementation must be improved, must be actively sought and respected.
Challenges and opportunities – needs for support and interventions
What do you think the main implementation challenges are, generally as well as in a specific country context, and how could they be overcome?
In many countries there is a lack of political will to address issues related to small-scale fisheries (or even to address fisheries issues in general). This also stems from a lack of understanding about the important contributions of SSF and the myriad problems facing the sector. There is need for good research on SSF as well as of media coverage on the contributions of SSF.
Policy attention (including financial support) is often on industrial fisheries and aquaculture. Policies that support large-scale fisheries (including trawling) and export-oriented industrial aquaculture need to be reversed, given also the impacts they have on the livelihoods and wellbeing of small-scale fishers and fishworkers and their communities.
A basic problem is that SSF organizations in many countries are not well organized and are unable to seek actions from policy makers on their proposals. It is imperative that systematic efforts are made to strengthen the organizational base of SSF organizations, with a particular focus on women, including the adoption of specific measures to address gender inequity and discrimination, to enable them to be equal partners in the implementation process.
Implementing the Guidelines requires a multi-sectoral approach, and partnerships with other departments, such as environment, rural development, social welfare, women, etc. However, fisheries departments are often weak, and unable to moot and anchor such partnerships, or to defend the interests of SSF. There is need, in such a context, to raise the profile of the fisheries sector as such (and of SSF), and to create wider awareness about the problems facing communities in SSF. This is also important in a context where the uses of coastal and other aquatic spaces is on the rise, and there are powerful interests staking a claim to such spaces and resources, including mining, tourism, energy, shipping, ports etc.
There is lack of policy coherence in many countries. Even as one set of policies promote food security, SSF etc., another set promote activities that negatively impact on SSF (like large-scale tourism, industrial aquaculture, SEZs, large ports, thermal and nuclear energy etc) and even lead to their displacement (through grabbing of their land and resources). Processes to promote policy harmonization and inter-departmental coordination, with active participation of SSF organizations, are a must. Related to this is the need to develop increased coherence and synergy between national level ssf policies and international instruments such as CEDAW, some of the ILO and other human rights instruments. There are already well developed sets of indicators and Monitoring and Evaluating tools for these legal instruments, and common indicators for M and E could be usefully developed.
In many countries planning and implementation within fisheries are typically top-down process. It is important to facilitate participatory process with full and effective representation of small-scale fisheries organizations and other CSOs in designing and implementing fisheries policies and legislation.
What are your experiences of addressing these types of challenges and what have been successful or unsuccessful strategies and approaches?
In our experience where small-scale fisheries organizations are strong, they have been able to challenge and seek reversal of unfavourable policies and developments. The most important strategy is to actively support and strengthen small-scale fisheries organizations, including of women.
Small-scale fisheries organizations need to make stronger links with other small-scale food producer organizations and networks at local, national, regional and international levels. This has provided a useful platform to seek positive policies in several countries. In some situations environmental groups have allied with small-scale fisheries organizations to challenge industrial fisheries, unsustainable aquaculture, and other large-scale projects with negative implications for livelihoods and the environment.
Small-scale fisheries groups, through their networks, have also succeeded in establishing effective global linkages with UN institutions. These linkages have been useful in some cases in challenging developments that negatively affect their lives and livelihoods.
In some countries the collaboration with progressive researchers and media persons has proved effective.
How would interventions vary, depending on the time frame (e.g. what can be done within the next 12 months, in the next 5 years, in the long term) and depending on the existing resources (e.g. small/medium investments or large/transformative investments)?
Next 12 months
Put in place a mechanism at the international level, with participation of FAO, IFAD, supporting governments, CSOs, researchers etc. to oversee implementation of the Guidelines, raise resources for implementation, develop concrete plans (with indicators) and so on.
Identify key partners committed to implementation and create opportunities to meet, discuss and plan
Create awareness about Guidelines at local, national, regional and international levels (develop material in local languages, training modules etc.)
Identify selected countries for implementation of Guidelines
Develop plan to support/ develop capacity of small-scale fisheries organizations to implement the Guidelines in collaboration with governments etc.
Develop plan for monitoring and evaluation, and for systematic reporting
Next five years
Facilitate the formation of national-level platforms (with CSO participation) for implementation of the Guidelines
Undertake participatory gap analysis in countries that take the lead in implementation, and based on this, develop and implement plans to support SSF with participation of SSF organizations
Undertake systematic efforts (locally, nationally and regionally) to strengthen SSF organizations (including women's organizations) to implement the Guidelines
Organize capacity-building programmes for national and local governments, to implement the Guidelines.
Organize periodic consultations among those partnering for implementation of the Guidelines as a means of sharing experiences, and planning for the next period
Undertake ongoing monitoring and reporting of programmes being implemented.
Develop communication material to share good examples of implementation of SSF Guidelines
At the end of this period, systematically evaluate the impact of initiaitves that have been undertaken, identify areas for course correction, and based on this, develop plans for the next period to strengthen implementation of the Guidelines.
Long-term
Monitoring and evaluation, course corrections;
Incorporate the SSF guiding principles into national policies;
Learning good practices, capturing and sharing the same.
The Civil Society Fisheries Platform
The CSO platform comprises the International Planning Committee for Food Sovereignty (IPC), Centro Internazionale Crocevia (CIC), the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF), the World Forum of Fisher People (WFFP) and the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fishworkers (WFF). These organizations have come together to participate as partners in the development of the International Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries being led by the FAO.
They have been involved with the process since its inception in 2008 at the Global Conference on Small-Scale Fisheries – Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries: Bringing together responsible fisheries and social development.
Their joint submission is attached, and below.
Partnering for implementation
The Civil Society fisheries platform established by the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fishworkers (WFF), the World Forum of Fisher People (WFFP), the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) and the International CSO Planning Committee on Food Sovereignty is committed to engaging in the implementation of the guidelines, both as a platform and through the individual organizations and their members.
We see ourselves as a vital partner in the process of implementing the ssf guidelines.
This will require considerable planning, cooperation and coordination, including obtaining the necessary financial support, capacity building of our respective organizations and recruitment of staff.
We see our role as complimentary to and in support of the work of statal organisations and of intergovernmental organizations, to be undertaken both at the policy decision taking level and at the grass roots community level.
A critical aspect is ensuring the incorporation of a human rights based approach into fisheries policies, and achieving coherence between social, economic, trade, agriculture, industrial and other policies with fisheries, where our CSOs have an important monitoring and advocacy role to play.
How do you see the role of your organization and others in the implementation of the SSF Guidelines?
Regarding the role of our organizations
In terms of others with key roles:
How can partnerships be fostered and strengthened to include the ‘voices of the marginalized?
What will be required at local, national, regional and global levels to ensure effective and efficient partnerships?
What best practices with regard to communication would you recommend for SSF Guidelines implementation at local, national, regional and global level?
What are your experiences from participatory monitoring and evaluation?
How can progress in implementing the SSF Guidelines be measured and reported in a useful way?
Measuring progress
Reporting
What do you think the main implementation challenges are, generally as well as in a specific country context, and how could they be overcome?
What are your experiences of addressing these types of challenges and what have been successful or unsuccessful strategies and approaches?
How would interventions vary, depending on the time frame (e.g. what can be done within the next 12 months, in the next 5 years, in the long term) and depending on the existing resources (e.g. small/medium investments or large/transformative investments)?
Next 12 months
Next five years
Long-term
ENDS