APA-Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire) This new device is designed to help authorities make decisions to combat overfishing and ensure the continued availability of fish stocks.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the University of Washington and Blue Matter Science Ltd have joined forces to develop a Fisheries Performance Assessment Tool (FPAT), of which Côte d’Ivoire is one of the first countries to implement it.
This tool is part of the “West African Coastal Fisheries Initiative (WACFI)” project. To promote this initiative among stakeholders in the fishing industry, the FAO is holding a workshop from December 21 to 23, 2023 in Grand-Bassam, a seaside resort located 40 km southeast of Abidjan.
According to Mr. Aboubacar Kone, National Administrator of the Coastal Fisheries Initiative West Africa (IPC-AO) at FAO, the UN organization is supporting Côte d’Ivoire in promoting the sustainable use and management of coastal fisheries, through this innovative approach.
This, he says, aims to improve governance and strengthen the seafood value chain. The FPAT is a tool that provides the government with real-time data on fish stocks, enabling it to take measures to guarantee the sustainability of the resource.
On the basis of this information, the relevant ministry will be able to adopt policies to ensure the renewal of fish species. The project, carried out by Côte d’Ivoire’s ‘Centre de Recherche Oceanographique’ (CRO), targets sardinella and tunas, fish species that are part of the tuna family.
Dr. Constance Diaha from CRO explained that the aim of the workshop was to “correct and validate all the data collected during the bibliographic review on sardinella and those added following biological sampling by the various fisheries stakeholders and administrations involved in fisheries data collection.”
As part of the roll-out of activities linked to this new fisheries performance assessment tool, training sessions are planned for statistical data managers from the country’s fisheries resource management structures.
The workshop should make it possible to validate the matrix of fisheries indicators, teach industry players how to interpret the results, identify useful information and use the FPAT tool for sardinella management, she continued.
This session comes after an initial session which, according to Dr. Constance Diaha, was to “present the FPAT tool,” including how it is used and the expected results; FPAT is a fisheries performance assessment tool.
This second workshop should enable fishing stakeholders to adopt appropriate management measures, the appropriate sizes of fish that can be caught and the nets required to avoid overfishing, she added. The FAT tool targets three levels: economic, community and ecological.
As a tool for assessing fisheries performance, FPAT also aims to guarantee food security. The results produced by this system are intended to guide decision-makers on the state of fish stocks, with a view to improving fishing yields in Côte d’Ivoire.
The West Africa Coastal Fisheries Initiative Project (IPC-AO), conceived by the FAO, is financed by the Global Environment Facility and aims to enable sustainable exploitation of fisheries for the benefit of institutional stakeholders and fishing communities, through holistic approaches.
It also incorporates approaches such as co-management, taking into account international instruments and directives to which Côte d’Ivoire is a signatory. Côte d’Ivoire is one of the first countries to test this assessment tool.
Mr. Aboubacar Kone pointed out that “it’s an easy-to-use tool, and less costly than previous assessment tools.” He announced that further workshops would be held to familiarize fisheries experts and managers in Côte d’Ivoire with the use of FPAT.
These discussions should enable Côte d’Ivoire to eventually equip itself with effective and relevant regulatory texts in support of sustainable management of fishery resources, through a review of legal frameworks and policies promoting the fishing sector.
AP/fss/abj/APA