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Annex 14
The Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries and the BOBLME Project
The BOBLME Project is a five year (2009-2014), $31 million collaboration involving Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. These eight countries are working together to develop a coordinated programme of action designed to improve the lives of the coastal populations through improved regional management of the Bay of Bengal environment and its fisheries. The major implementation partners are the Fisheries and Environment Departments of each country. The BOBLME Project is funded principally by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), Norway, Sweden, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the USA. FAO is the executing agency.
The Bay of Bengal is one of 64 identified LMEs of the world, and covering approx. 6.2 million km2 it is also one of the largest, and its coasts are among the most populous in the world. Projects similar to the BOBLME are currently implemented, with GEF-funding in almost 20 of these LMEs, and all follow a similar modular approach for sustainable development. The five modules identified are productivity, pollution and ecosystem health, fish and fisheries, governance, and socio-economics.
A key requirement of EAF is its application and integration to entire management systems such that it has best chance to contribute positively to governance of aquatic resource use, biodiversity, and human well-being, including social development and poverty alleviation. For example, addressing both human and ecological well-being, the EAF combines two concepts: that of conserving biodiversity, ecosystem structure and functioning, and that of fisheries management dealing with providing food, income and livelihoods for humans. These areas can be further subdivided into policy objectives and issues which need to be addressed (APFIC, 2009; Staples and Funge-Smith, 2009).
In the two years since it became operational, the BOBLME Project has initiated an extensive programme of studies, reviews, workshops and trainings that have established baseline information in the Project’s theme areas of fisheries, pollution and critical habitats. The Project will continue to assist countries implement the EAF for the transboundary or shared fish stocks of hilsa shad and Indian mackerel, and strengthen natural resource management and policy development capabilities in general. Under the key aspect of ecological well- being, the Project contributes to improved management of critical habitats, promotes the establishment of regional management bodies and Marine Protected Areas or fish refugia. It also works toward pollution reduction and increased understanding of large-scale processes and the application of ecosystem health indicators. Initiatives to promote social well-being are concerned with alternative livelihoods, community participation in fisheries and habitat management, and improving the resilience to extreme natural events. Key areas of work in governance, as the ability to achieve the balance of ecological and social well-being, are in the field of strengthening institutions in general and policy making capacity in particular, as well as promotion of coastal management best practices and multi-sectoral involvement. Improved or effective communication from science to policy and management is another focus of the project.
Notwithstanding the current efforts of the countries in implementing EAF, the Project faces some inherent difficulties. In practice, because governments are structured along sectoral lines, e.g. agriculture, forestry and fisheries; mining and petroleum; environment; shipping and maritime affairs, sector-based management approaches, rather than integrated cross-sectoral (EAF) approaches, are still widespread (Staples and Hermes, in press). Thus, while the BOBLME Project was planned and developed in an integrated fashion - with broad sectoral involvement and advocating multi-sectoral participation - and the evaluation is designed to cover multi-sectoral outcomes, the reality is that the activities are implemented mostly at the single sector - or sometimes two levels: fisheries and environment. The EAF, if applied appropriately, makes use of a combination of sectoral and ecosystem management tools, but integrates these at the planning and at the monitoring and evaluation steps in the policy cycle (Figure 1).
127 Planning
Implementation coordinated
Monitoring &
Evaluation
EAF: Integrated Management System
Forestry
Ecosystem level
Cross-sectoral, applying Eco-health Indicators
Ecosystem level
Integrated, cross-sectoral
MiningPetroleum
ShippingMarine affairs
Environment protection and conservation agency
Manufacturing
Tourism
Fishing Agriculture
Figure 1. The Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries applied to an Integrated Management System (modified from Staples and Hermes, in press).
Conclusion
Overall, the BOBLME Project is attempting to integrate ecological, economic, social and governance elements into the management platforms it is developing for the transboundary fisheries for hilsa shad, Indian mackerel and shark and, overall, into a Strategic Action Plan for the ongoing coordinated management of the Bay of Bengal marine ecosystem. The Project is building on many National EAF practices already in place, and implementing a coordinated programme to strengthen management capability in each participating country and harmonise management practices and policies to achieve effective regional management.
The EAF is considered a viable and most applicable approach to be applied in a Large Marine Ecosystem project such as BOBLME. Used in an integrated management system, it should be understood and implemented as a combination of ecosystem planning and monitoring, with sectoral implementation and environmental management. The Large Marine Ecosystem concept is an effective integrative resource management approach to achieve better resource management and biodiversity outcomes. The implementation of the concept, however, requires a high degree of intergovernmental cooperation and will incur higher transaction costs to make it effective. At present, understanding of the EAF is still rather limited; there is confusion with similar approaches; there is uncertainty about the tools available and applicable; and moving from theory to practice is a major remaining challenge.
To meet this challenge, the BOBLME, together with regional partners such as SEAFDEC and the USAID- Coral Triangle Support Programme, is commissioning the development of a regional EAF Training Course, to become available early 2012.
References
APFIC. 2009. APFIC/FAO Regional consultative workshop “Practical implementation of the ecosystem approach to fisheries and aquaculture”, 18–22 May 2009, Colombo, Sri Lanka. FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok, Thailand. RAP Publication 2009/10, 96 pp.
Staples, D. & Funge-Smith, S. (2009). Ecosystem approach to fisheries and aquaculture: Implementing the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok, Thailand. RAP Publication 2009/11, 48 pp.
Staples, D. & Hermes, R. (in press). Marine biodiversity and resource management – what is the link? Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management.
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Annex 15