In this edition of the SocPro4Fish Updates, we bring you an enriching collection of reading materials and captivating podcasts that delve into the fascinating world of Social Protection in the Fisheries sector. 

In this heartwarming tale, meet Sandra Gómez Montaño, a dedicated 55-year-old fish processor, and the inspiring Platoneras, Afro-Colombian women vendors, who play a crucial role in providing essential nutrition for local families.

Through the project  SocPro4Fish, the Marine and Coastal Research Institute of Colombia - INVEMAR, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - FAO, held the second meeting of the territorial table of the Interinstitutional Group for Social Protection for Fisheries and Aquaculture - GIPRO, in Buenaventura.

Discover the latest edition of SocPro4Fish Updates, your gateway to valuable insights, and collaborative efforts in the realm of social protection within the fisheries sector. This edition shines a spotlight on capacity building initiatives that aim to promote sustainable development, strengthen social protection programmes and empower institutional stakeholder to expand these the coverage of these programmes and fishers worldwide to access them.

This webinar focused on how social protection can improve the design and delivery of targeted and more cohesive climate responses and poverty reduction efforts for the fisheries sector. It included some preliminary results from a new global database and supportive tools and knowledge resources.

This session explored how social protection can foster links to aquatic systems. Blue food systems transformation can only be achieved through policy coherence that brings environmental sustainability and socioeconomic well-being together. 

The UN General Assembly has declared 2022 as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture (IYAFA 2022) to enhance global awareness and promote collaboration around the theme. To provide guidance for related initiatives, the IYAFA Action Plan was structured around seven pillars, including social and environmental sustainability. Social protection can provide valuable contributions to all of them.

This course provides an introduction to climate-poverty interactions and entry points for addressing them. The course aims to improve knowledge and capacities for more integrated, multi-sectoral approaches, so that policies, investments, and programmes have a greater impact on rural poverty reduction and climate change adaptation/mitigation and the interactions between the two.

To promote economic inclusion, strengthen the resilience and livelihoods of fishers, fish workers, and farmers to cope with shocks, and reduce barriers to access social protection, the SocPro4Fish project is being implemented in Colombia. The project is working with artisanal fishers and other stakeholders in Buenaventura, such as platoneras (women in the post-harvest sector) and piangüeras (shellfish pickers). Regarding the aquaculture sector, the project is being implemented in the districts of Meta and Córdoba, involving three aquaculture associations.

CIHEAM BARI launched a new high-level specialized Training Programme in collaboration with the FAO, GFCM and funded by the Italian Cooperation. On 23 and 24 May, FAO SocPro4Fish Team held an advanced course in sustainable coastal community development on social security in fisheries.

Within the framework of the SocPro4Fish project developed by FAO and INVEMAR with the support of the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD), meetings were held with institutions from the departments of Meta and Córdoba to strengthen the actions of the Inter-institutional Group for Social Protection in the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector (GIPRO).

In a concerted effort to enhance the capabilities of small-scale fish farmers under the SocPro4Fish project, the Marine and Coastal Research Institute (INVEMAR) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) conducted two workshops in April. The workshops focused on strengthening financial knowledge and understanding revolving funds within the context of artisanal fisheries and aquaculture in Colombia.

Women play a key role in the fisheries value chain. But they still face many challenges due to the lack of visibility and voice in decision-making, and a lack of a legal agenda promoting gender equality.

To promote dialogue, knowledge sharing and advocacy to identify the gaps that exist for social protection, as well as the strengths and weaknesses in the marketing of fishery products, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), together with the Institute of Marine and Coastal Research of Colombia - INVEMAR, carried out the workshop 'Inputs for the recovery of livelihoods and identification of gaps towards social protection in small-scale fisheries in Buenaventura', aimed at fishermen, fishery workers and local institutions in this sector.

SocPro4Fish Updates focus on Tunisia.

Lookback at the SocPro4Fish inception meeting in Tunisia where it was discussed how to extend social protection coverage to fishers and fish workers SSF (Small Scale Fisheries). 

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO, and its partners including the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, NORAD, are supporting the Platoneras to strengthen their livelihoods and improve their access to social protection schemes - all the while boosting the community's food security.

SocPro4Fish recap of the year 2022.