(Bridgetown, 9 September 2015) – According to studies conducted by fisheries experts, there is scope to almost double fishing efforts and increase production from some shrimp and groundfish stocks in the Brazil-Guianas shelf in coming years.

Shrimp and groundfish fisheries experts from the Brazil-Guianas Shelf sub-region, met in Barbados, 7-8 September, at a regional Workshop on Investing in Ecosystem-based Shrimp and Groundfish Fisheries management.

The Workshop served as a meeting of the joint Working Group on Shrimp and Groundfish of the Western Central Atlantic Fisheries Commission (WECAFC), Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), and the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea (IFREMER). The workshop was also supported by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) under its programme for Managing Regional Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems for Biodiversity Conservation.

The 35 experts discussed the status of the shrimp and groundfish stocks, investment options for fisheries in the sub-region - which comprises Brazil, Venezuela, French Guiana, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname - and opportunities to harmonize fisheries management measures that would increase financial and environmental sustainability of the fisheries sector.

According to Juan Carlos Seijo, Professor at the Universidad Marista, Merida, Mexico, “Shrimp and groundfish fisheries have experienced severe challenges in recent years, resulting in a downward trend in production levels, largely due to high fuel costs and reduced catches. The fleets in some of the countries have also been downsized significantly.” In addition, some shared stocks of shrimp and groundfish are also overexploited or fully exploited.

Raymon van Anrooy, Secretary of the Western Central Atlantic Fishery Commission (WECAFC) added that “the limited profits made by some of the shrimp and groundfish fleets in the last decade caused the postponement of investments in fleet and infrastructure modernization projects. As a consequence, profitability could be increased by targeted investments in fishing community infrastructure, ecologically sustainable fishing technologies, more fuel efficient vessels, institutional and organizational development, value addition and data and information collection and analysis of gear technologies. The project has prepared a general investment plan for the sector, which has to be be followed up by pre-feasibility studies in each of the countries in 2016.

Some 45% of the shrimp production in the Western Central Atlantic originates from the Brazil-Guianas self. The contribution of fisheries to the food security, socio-economic development and livelihoods of the region’s people must be underscored, as the shrimp and groundfish fisheries sector contributes over 850 million USD in value annually to the six countries that comprise the area. The sector also generates jobs for at least 170 000 people, supporting the livelihoods of over 600 000 families. 

Recommendations were made to increase collaboration in stock assessments of the fish and shrimp resources between the countries, to build capacity to carry out the necessary analyses in support of fisheries management decision making, to develop a regional plan of action to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing as well as a sub-regional shrimp and groundfish fishery management plan for the Northern Brazil-Guianas Shelf countries, to finalize a general investment plan and to assist the countries in conducting the necessary feasibility studies for the preparation of full-fledged, location specific fisheries investment proposals.

The CRFM and WECAFC will continue to work together to provide technical advice in support of better fisheries management in the sub-region.