(c) FAO Liberia

Monrovia –  Sea cucumbers along Liberia’s coast need special attention for sustainable management.  

The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority of Liberia (NaFAA), and its local and international partners have reviewed, finalized, and validated the draft Fisheries Management Plan for the sustainable Sea Cucumber fishery in Liberia.

The validation process took place at a two-day workshop in Monrovia, attended by other national authorities, sea cucumbers fisherfolks, national and regional fishing associations, NGOs and other relevant stakeholders on 10-11 April 2023. FAO’s aquaculture experts from Senegal and Rome facilitated the workshop.

The government of Liberia identifies sea cucumber fisheries as one of the key fisheries in the country with its potential to provide opportunities for income diversification and a source for nutrition. However, its fishery practices as well as ecologies are under-documented. FAO’s technical support is in response to a request from NaFAA to assess the current status of the sea cucumbers fisheries operations and to advise on the need of a more formalized management framework and necessary actions to enhance the livelihoods and the quality of life of the sea cucumbers fisherfolks. 

On the first day of the workshop, the government and stakeholders reviewed and finalized the final fisheries management plan as a national framework for sustainable sea cucumber fisheries management. On the second day, the main results of the project were presented to a wider audience including local and international partners. The results included the very first national sea cucumbers Fisheries Management Plan, a practical guide on safe hookah diving, a Liberian sea cucumbers processing manual into bêche-de-mer, and a sea cucumber aquaculture pilot business plan, developed by FAO in collaboration with NaFAA.  

“Sea cucumber fisheries in Liberia was not well documented, although there is a suggestion of overfishing leading to depletion of stocks and even local extinction of high-value species in some localities” said Ms Mariatou Njie, Representative, FAO Liberia. “Consequently, sea cucumber fisheries require the support of a management framework to conserve stocks and allow equitable and sustainable access and trade to the resources.”  Madame Njie thanked the technical teams of NaFAA and FAO for the collaboration that made possible the successful implementation of the project and expressed deep appreciation to NaFAA for the strong support and cooperation.  

“Implementing this plan will serve as a source of revenue for the government and will create job opportunities for Liberians. This is the first time that we are having a species-specific management plan in Liberia, and we want to assure our partners that this will not be the last,” remarked Mr. Augustine M. Monaballah, Deputy Director General for Administration of NaFAA. He also assured that NaFAA stands ready to implement fully the management plan to ensure sustainable sea cucumber harvest and fisheries activities in the country. 

“Many actors were involved in the implementation of this project from the very start. NaFAA, international organizations and bilateral partners, universities and, of course, the sea cucumber fisherfolks proving the importance of joining forces for our only main priority: enhancing the quality of life and livelihoods of the small scale fisherfolks while we ensure the conservation of the target species,” said the facilitator/presenter of the “Assessment of the sea cucumber fisheries along the coast in Liberia” Project, Ms Paula Anton, Fishery and Aquaculture Officer, FAO Sub-regional Office for West Africa. 

National authorities and stakeholders, finalizing the fisheries management plan for sea cucumbers, identified key tasks to follow in accordance with the plan. One of the tasks is to spread and highlight the importance of the Fisheries Management Plan for the conservation of resources and sustainable fisheries. Others are to establish an effective mechanism between fishermen and the national authority to register, share and compare data from catches and to improve knowledge on stocks and conduct continuous trainings for divers and processors for a safe and sustainable value chain development.   

Following the validation workshop, the FAO expert group will conduct hands-on training in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County to continue providing support for the sustainable sea cucumber fisheries on the ground. The training will target fishmongers and processors in the coastal communities to build their capacity on safe hookah diving activities, sea cucumber handling and processing and to sensitize them on the new fishery management plan. 

About the project 
The workshop and the training were implemented under FAO’s technical cooperation programme “Assessment of the sea cucumber fisheries along the coast in Liberia” in collaboration with NaFAA with the duration of 2020-2023.