Poster: Sustainable Fish Stocks and Shared Responsibilities for an Ecosystem Approach in the South West Indian Ocean: SWIOFP Unites Nine Countries
Payet Rondolph South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Project Johan Groeneveld South West Indian Ocean, ecosystem approach, fisheries, management The GEF Large Marine Ecosystem Programme in the western Indian Ocean consists of three inter-linked projects, for fisheries (South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Project or SWIOFP, funded by the World Bank), productivity (ASCLME, UNDP) and for land-based influences on the marine environment (WIO-Lab, UNEP). The SWIOFP assists nine member countries to: a) gather information about fish stocks and fisheries; b) build capacity in marine science and resource management; c) mainstream biodiversity conservation in fisheries policies; and d) support a regional framework for managing shared marine resources. The six components of SWIOFP address data and information technology, crustacean, demersal and pelagic fish resources, impacts of fishing on biodiversity and a fisheries management component. Strong collaborative links have been forged between fisheries scientists at a regional level leading to management of fisheries, which is reflected in many shared research projects that span international boundaries along the southeast African coast and the islands of Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles and Comoros. A retrospective analysis of past research surveys and fisheries catch and effort trends have been completed as a TDA baseline. Between 2008 and the present, SWIOFP facilitated numerous research surveys using chartered fishing vessels, trained and deployed fisheries observers at sea, funded 21 masters degrees, and set in motion institutional support to national management entities and the regional Commission for fisheries management in the SWIO. The project has successfully bridged the gap between the science and management of fisheries through developing in each country an EAF management plan. The project is in its final year and will leave a legacy of shared responsibility for shared stocks in the region and the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries institutionalised.
Poster: Sustainable Fish Stocks and Shared Responsibilities for an Ecosystem Approach in the South West Indian Ocean: SWIOFP Unites Nine Countries.pdf
