African Great Lakes Conference

2–5 May 2017Entebbe, Uganda

Sustainable Fisheries and

Aquaculture Management

Convenors:

Richard Ogutu-OhwayoIan G. Cowx

underlying fishery biology and exploitation

patterns

fishery management and fishing rights/tenure

livelihoods analysis and adaptation strategies

to future changes in the fisheries from

environmental and climate change;

linkages between fisheries and aquaculture

development;

the food security and nutritional contribution;

future management and adaptation strategies

Theme objectives

Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture Management

Handout

Can fisheries management in the Great

Lakes of Africa contribute to achieving the

UN Sustainable Development Goals?

Ian G. Cowx & Martin van der Knaap

Hull International Fisheries Institute & FAO, Ghana

Outline

• Inland fisheries and the UN

Sustainable Development

Goals

• Contribution of African Great

Lakes fisheries to society

• Pressures on African Great

Lakes fish and fisheries

• Management for sustainable

fisheries and aquaculture in

AGL

UN Sustainable Development goals

Appears that inland fisheries are largely ignored

SDG 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans,

seas and marine resources for sustainable development

Aim: to end poverty, protect the planet and

ensure prosperity for all

Wild & cultured fish, InleLake, Shan State, Myanmar

Inland fisheries as an ecosystem service

• 11.2 – 41.1 million tonnes of fish caught

globally from inland waters : Provide 20%

of all global captured food fish

• 90 percent of global inland fisheries catch

from developing countries

• Fundamental to nutrition, food security,

livelihoods and societal well-being

• 60 million people directly involved in

small-scale inland fisheries (30 million of

which are women)

• 20 grams of a small river fish contains the

daily iron and zinc needs for a child.

Dependence on inland fish

90% of inland fish is caught in developing countries and

65% is caught in Low Income Food Deficient countries.

Source – Van der Graaf et al. (2012)

Contribution to GDP

Source: NEPAD/FAO - the Value of African Fisheries, 2014

Importance of Fisheries & Aquaculture in Africa

Gross value added

(million USD)

Contribution to GDP (%)

Total GDP African Countries

1,909,514

Total Fisheries and Aquaculture

24,030 1.26

Inland fisheries 6,275 0.33Artisanal fisheries 8,130 0.43Marine Industrial Fisheries

6,849 0.36

Total Aquaculture 2,776 0.15

Fisheries & Aquaculture contribute 6.2% to agriculture GDP

Employment by Subsector

Source: NEPAD/FAO - the value of African Fisheries, 2014

Importance of Fisheries & Aquaculture in Africa

Number of Employees

(Thousands)

Share subsector

(%)

% Female

Total Employment

12,269 27.3

Total Inland Fisheries

4,958 40.4 26.7

Marine Artisanal 4,041 32.9 23.8

Marine Industrial 2,350 19.2 43.5

Total Aquaculture 920 7.5 4.8

Inland fisheries as an ecosystem service

• Inland fisheries are a last

resort when primary

income sources fail:

– economic shifts

– conflicts

– natural disasters (floods)

• Places where consumption of

fish protein/animal protein

ratios greater than 20% are

also place with high

concentrations of rural poverty.

UN Sustainable Development goals

= sustainable fisheries

= fish for livelihoods and food security

= women in fisheries

= fisheries driving environmental quality

Contribution of fisheries in

the Great Lakes of Africa to

achieving SDGS

VICTORIANYASSA / MALAWI

TANGANYIKA KIVU EDWARD ALBERT

Fish diversity ~ 700 ~ 1,000 ~ 325 28 ~ 81 40-55

Fish yieldper year (t)

~ 1,000,000 ~116,000165,000-200,000

21,400 ~ 16, 900 ~ 172,000

Employment

200,000 fishers, 700,000 ancillary

56,000 fishers; 500,000 ancillary

100,000 fisheries-related

500,000 fisheries related

2100 fishers

35,420 fishers

Contributionto nutrition

Protein for 8,000,000

people

Food for 1.6 million people

25-40% of protein needs for 1,000,000

Source of quality animal protein to riparian communities

Fisheries of the African Great Lakes

• Estimated catch 1.5 million tonnes

• Employment for 2+ million people

• Much of the catch consumed directly by

households and locally, which does not

appear in national accounts

• Explosion of cage culture – but how

sustainable and equitable are the

ventures

• Support valuable ornamental

fisheries

Fisheries of the African Great Lakes

0

50000

100000

150000

200000

250000

300000

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

35000

40000

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014

Val

ue

of

exp

ort

ed o

rnam

enta

l fis

h (

USD

)

Nu

mb

er o

f fi

sh e

xpo

rted

fro

m M

alaw

i

Year

Number of fish exported Value of exports (USD)

Threats to AGL fisheries

Fisheries assessment & exploitation

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

19

59

19

61

19

63

19

65

19

67

19

69

19

71

19

73

19

75

19

77

19

79

19

81

19

83

19

85

19

87

19

89

19

91

19

93

19

95

19

97

19

99

20

01

20

03

20

05

20

07

20

10

Cat

ch (t

on

nes

x 1

00

0)

Other

Tilapias

Haplochromines

Dagaa

Nile perch

Year

Fisheries assessments suggest

declining fisheries or change in

species contribution to less valuable

species – but how reliable is the

information? Victoria

Malawi

Fisheries assessment & exploitation

0

50000

100000

150000

200000

250000

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014

No

of f

ishe

rs

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

70000

80000

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014

No

of f

ishi

ng c

raft

0

200000

400000

600000

800000

1000000

1200000

1400000

1600000

1800000

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014

No

of

fgil

lne

ts

Gillnets >5”

Gillnets <5”*

0

2000000

4000000

6000000

8000000

10000000

12000000

14000000

16000000

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014

No

of lo

nglin

e ho

oks

Lake Victoria Frame Survey results

No of fishers No of fishing craft

No of gillnets No of longline hooks

External Pressures on AGL Fisheries

Hydropower

Mining

Deforestation

and land use

change

Conservation

Water quality

CLIMATE CHANGE

Agriculture Aquaculture

Population

growth

Invasive species

470

471

472

473

474

475

476

477

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

wa

ter

leve

l in

me

tre

s (

a.m

.s.l)

Year

Variation in water level, Lake Malawi

471.5

472

472.5

473

473.5

474

474.5

475

475.5

476

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

La

ke

leve

l in

me

tre

s (

a.m

.s.l.)

Year

Variation in water level, Lake Tanganyika

Tanganyika

Malawi

1133.00

1133.50

1134.00

1134.50

1135.00

1135.50

1136.00

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

La

ke

leve

l in

me

tre

s (

a.m

.s.l)

Year

Water level variation in Lake Victoria

Victoria

Lake level variability

Standardized annual yield

(kg/ha) against seasonal

relative lake level for lakes

and reservoirs (Source Kolding

et al. 2012)

470

471

472

473

474

475

476

477

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

wa

ter

leve

l in

me

tre

s (

a.m

.s.l)

Year

Variation in water level, Lake Malawi

471.5

472

472.5

473

473.5

474

474.5

475

475.5

476

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

La

ke

leve

l in

me

tre

s (

a.m

.s.l.)

Year

Variation in water level, Lake Tanganyika

Tanganyika

Malawi

1133.00

1133.50

1134.00

1134.50

1135.00

1135.50

1136.00

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

La

ke

leve

l in

me

tre

s (

a.m

.s.l)

Year

Water level variation in Lake Victoria

Victoria

Lake level variability

Water level management

River Nile Outflow

Link between poverty and ecosystem degradation

Natural resource

degradation

Affluence

Poverty

Access to

resourcesTechnology

Culture and

values

Over-

consumption

Pollution,

resource loss Short-term

decisions

Wrong

technology

Low achievements:

education and health

Sense of insecurity

Voicelessness &

powerlessness

Shocks &

vulnerability

Bad governance

Lack of

income

Affluence v Poverty

Protein replacement – Lake Victoria

• Livestock has high water cost (98% for feed production).

• Increased livestock production would lead to pasture

degradation, soil erosion and carbon release.

• Replacement protein sources not as high in micronutrients

• Dietary transition and increased dependence on energy rich

food

Land replacement Kcalories protein

Potential solutions/strategies?

24562720

Fisheries management interventions

Regulatory technique

Stock size Broodstock protection

Undisturbed spawning

Free migration

Fish welfare

Closed areas

* * *

Close season

* * * *

Catch limit * Fishing pressure

* *

Type of gear

*

Size of fish * * *

Regulation of exploitation and protection of fisheries

Fisheries management tools

Position of inland fisheries

Multiple uses of aquatic resources

Agriculture,

aquaculture

industry and

urban wastes

Geological,

geographical

and climatic

conditions

Agriculture,

forestry, land

use and civil

works

Quality, quantity and

seasonality of water

resources

Construction of dams

and barrages for

hydropower, irrigation,

Water use for

industrial processes

Urban water supplies

Aquatic plant

and animal

resources

Urban development, navigation

and flood management

Biodiversity and

conservation

Amenity,

sport and

recreational

fishing

Exploitable

fishery

Nutritional

and

economic

benefits

Sustainable

exploitation

of fisheriesMining and resource

extraction

farming

Distribution of benefits

Governance/power relationships

Hydropower

Individuals Key players

Context settersCrowd

Mining

Forestry

Fisheries

Conservation

Low

Low

High

High

Aquaculture

Perceived value

Position of inland fisheries

Future scenarios

CLIMATE CHANGE

FIRST recognise development will occur to meet societal demands

for energy, food security and improved livelihoods

But how to minimise impact?

Sustainability as a process

Biological Sustainability

Economic Sustainability

Social Sustainability

Institutional Sustainability

Sources: Charles (1994); Costanza & Patten (1995); Arlinghaus,Mehner & Cowx (2002)

A sustainable system persits in the long-

term!

– Fish Population sustainability

– Conservation of biodiversity

– Socially just and fair

– Economically/institutionally

efficient

Need to integrate ecological and economic objectives of fisheries within political frameworks

Ecology and environment

Economic and social

domain

Political and institutional

domain

Integrating ecological and economic objectives

Ecology and environment

Economic and social

domain

Political and institutional

domain

Maximise positive interaction

Minimise negative interactions

Requires aquatic resource knowledge system

Allows the opportunity to promote the concept of Ecosystem Services to

achieve SDGs

Need to understand motives and drivers of each sector

• Shift fisheries science from data-driven outputs to engage with policy and development needs

• Fisheries management is just one tool in a suite of measures to support fisheries

• Acknowledgement that developments (including cage farming) will go ahead - focus research on optimisation of resource use

• Improve mechanisms to communicate importance of fish conservation and fisheries to livelihoods, local economies and food security (and to SDGs) and influence decision making – use ecosystem services approach

Summary