The purpose of this paper has been to review in rather general
terms the work that needs to be done, and particularly the work that is needed
to be done on a regional basis, and for which some international support,
especially through the CECAF Project, would be valuable. The identification of
detailed and specific activities with the quantification of the costs, in
personnel and other support, is a separate task. However, to help in this task,
it is worth summarizing here the sort of work that has been
identified.
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(a) Assessment of resources
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Assistance to countries in improving statistics (consultants;
training). Support to working groups (travel; interpretation as needed;
participation by non-local scientists).
Compilation and preliminary analysis of data in advance of
working group meetings (consultants or contracts).
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(b) Economic studies
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Studies of major stocks or groups of stocks (consultants or
contracts). Support to national studies (consultants).
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(c) Decisions on measures
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Studies of distribution and migrations of major stocks
(consultants).
Support to meetings (travel, interpretation, etc.)
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(d) Inspection and surveillance
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Assistance in revising basic fishery legislation
(consultants). Studies on the methodology of surveillance (consultants,
seminars/workshops).
Studies on requirements for reporting (consultants;
seminars/workshops).
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It should be stressed that this listing comprises little more
than a minimum set of those activities. Without this degree of support it would
be optimistic to expect countries to be able to introduce an effective scheme of
managing the resources of the CECAF region. In fact, it will be a remarkable
achievement if effective management does become a fact with no more than this
degree of international support. With more support, much more could be done, and
effective management would be probable, rather than more possible. For example,
the establishment might be considered on a regional or sub-regional (e.g. for
the zone from Mauritania to Gambia) basis, of a permanent international research
centre, able to give more substantial support to the present scattered national
research work that can be provided by the rather disjointed pattern of working
parties. This would certainly enable much better advice to be provided on the
state of resource. This is probably the stage in the whole management process
where increased outside help would be most effective, but it would not be
difficult to identify opportunities in each of the other stages.
