This completion report provides an overview of the joint SEAFDEC-Sweden project entitled 'Fisheries and Habitat Management, Social Welfare and Climate Change'. The report describes the results and achievements of the project in 2019 and the entire period of the project from administration and reporting practices, collaboration and networking, lessons learned, challenges that have arisen and work after its completion. The project has maintained the momentum of sub-regional cooperation promoted by SEAFDEC since the early 2000s.
Background
IUU fishing practices are a major problem worldwide that contribute to overfishing and overexploitation of fish stocks in large and small-scale fisheries. The Project was coordinated by the SEAFDEC Secretariat in collaboration with its Training Department (TD) and Marine Fisheries Resources Development and Management Department (MFRDMD).
Sector Development
The project is one of SEAFDEC's regional projects under ASSP, which supported AMS in implementing relevant activities to achieve common goals. The results of the project were discussed and reported through the SEAFDEC mechanism and the ASEAN mechanism.
Project Results and Accomplishments
Results Achieved in 2019
The project supported SEAFDEC and the ASEAN Member States in their efforts to achieve the goals leading to the realization of this vision.
Overall Results and Accomplishments 2013-2019
To further promote and maintain a gender perspective in a systematic manner, the SEAFDEC Secretariat proposed the development of a “SEAFDEC Gender Strategy” at the 50th SEAFDEC Council Meeting on 26-30 March 2018 in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The Council agreed to the proposal, noting the value of SEAFDEC's Gender Equality Strategy in providing an overall framework to facilitate SEAFDEC's gender mainstreaming efforts in its programs and projects, which would eventually support gender mainstreaming in national fisheries. Participation in international and regional meetings to share knowledge and experience about project results.
Administration and Reporting
The project organized regular sub-regional meetings to keep countries informed of progress in each sub-region. In 2015, the Mid-Term Review recommended improvement in project performance; the Swedish Embassy also advised on the need to recruit project staff. The project faced major challenges, such as the turnover of some key staff due to family.
The reports summarized the operational and technical progress and achievements of the Project and its financial status. The project held annual review meetings with the participation of officers from SEAFDEC and the Embassy of Sweden to discuss the progress, work plan and financial matters. Before the completion of the project, the Embassy of Sweden commissioned an external auditing firm, Moore Stephen, UK, to audit the project (in 2018).
Cooperation with other Authorities and Partners
Significant efforts were made on the collaborative activities between the Mangroves for the Future (MFF), Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), and the Project on Gender Synthesis across South Asia and Southeast Asia during 2017-2018. The Project provided research-based technical input. and expert advice on the progress of the actions on managing fisheries and combating IUU fishing of the Gulf of Thailand sub-region during the meetings of the RPOA-IUU Coordination Committee. The Project and USAID Oceans worked closely together to share experiences and information on gender awareness in the region.
Learning Institute (LI): Project engaged with LI of Cambodia to implement activities under the Project "Strengthening Community Fisheries Management and Livelihood Diversification in Cambodia". CORIN-Asia Cambodia: The project subcontracted the Coastal Resources Institute-Cambodia to implement a project activity in Cambodia. Sustainable Development Foundation (SDF): The project engaged Thailand's SDF to implement field activities of the project "Towards an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management in Trat Bay".
Fund Utilization
United Nations Environment Project (UNEP): The project worked in coordination with the SEAFDEC/UNEP/GEF project to establish and operate a regional system of fisheries refuges in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, which launched in 2014 started with mackerel from the Indo-Pacific region. in the Gulf of Thailand, and on gender aspects. The aim of the project was to strengthen the capacity of local institutions in coastal communities to prevent or reverse the degradation of natural resources, reduce their vulnerability and increase their adaptive capacity to the risks of climate change. During the first two years of project implementation, SEAFDEC was not able to utilize all available resources.
SEAFDEC was advised by the mid-term evaluation in 2015 to recruit project staff to speed up the activity's implementation. From the project was able to use the fund according to the plan due to new project staff on board and the activities were carried out by local partners. The reasons were that the project carried out several trainings and consultations, especially in 2016, which is why travel costs for participants and trainees during the activity's trainings, workshops and consultations were highly budgeted in budget items 5 and 6.
Results Analysis
Overall Results Synthesis
Based on the successful delivery of the project, several documents will be important to meet the requirements in the FIP progress. The Project staff provided the input for the formulation of the new FAO/GEF project. In the last year of the Project, the focus was on the development and implementation of sub-regional and bi/trilateral MCS networks in the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea region.
In addition, the project facilitated the 6 meetings in the Gulf of Thailand sub-region and the 2 meetings in the Andaman Sea sub-region. Report on education and awareness on integration of fisheries and habitat management and management of fishing capacity. Report of the Subregional Consultation on the Development of MCS in the Bay.
Challenges and Issues during the Implementation of the Project
Future Looking and Sustainability of the Project’s Results and Initiatives
FAO will also follow up on the formulation of the new projects, the GEF/GOTFish and the Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem (Phase 2). National officers from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Thailand were trained with the support of the Project. The GoTFish project will also coordinate and support the implementation of the regional plans of actions (RPOA-Neritic Tunas, RPOA-Capacity and RPOA-IUU).
GoTFish: Promoting the Blue Economy in the Gulf of Thailand through the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries”. A blue economy enables synergy in the development of the various sectors of the marine economy (capture fisheries, aquaculture, energy, transport, marine mining and ecotourism). It is based on the application of the practical guide for gender analysis (GA) in small-scale fisheries.
List of Reports and Publication of the SEAFDEC-Sweden Project 2013-2019
Transboundary species management: Indo-Pacific mackerel (Rastrelliger brachysoma) in the Gulf of Thailand sub-region was held on 12-13 September 2019. Regional Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity (RPOA-Capacity) 8.1 Regional Technical Consultation on Development of Regional Plan of Action-. 11.10 1st Meeting of the Technical Working Group for Fisheries Management in Transboundary Areas between Cambodia and Laos PDR, Siem Reap, Cambodia, 2-4 June 2014.
Implementation of the FAO Voluntary Guidelines for Sustainable Small-Scale Coastal Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication, 7-9 June 2016.
Results Assessment Framework (RAF) Targets as of 31 December 2019
Conducted and facilitated dialogues at the bilateral and sub-regional level to promote understanding of the need for transboundary resource and habitat management and. Since 2014, the project has supported the development of a Regional Action Plan for the Sustainable Use of Neritic Tuna in the ASEAN Region (RPOA-Neritic Tuna); The RPOA was adopted by the SEAFDEC Council in April 2015 and by the ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Fisheries (ASWGFi) in June 2015. Progress and results were regularly reported at the annual meeting of the SEAFDEC Council and the ASEAN Mechanism.
Raised awareness in the ASEAN region and targeted sub-regions of the need to register (all) fishing vessels and the importance of having appropriate fishing licenses (vessels, equipment and people) to allow monitoring and control of fishing capacity. The sub-regional framework (Andaman Sea and Gulf of Thailand) for the implementation of the RPOA Fishing Capacity is being discussed along with cooperative agreements. Aim to reach, in collaboration with partners, communities in four locations in each of the four sub-regions.
Small-scale fisheries and ecosystem-based management of fisheries and marine and coastal resources in Trat Bay”, a process and results publication. Cooperation with the ILO, FAO and others has facilitated the recognition of the need to (i) address labor issues and working conditions, (ii) further develop the regional approach to implementing the SSF guidelines (with human rights and equality gender) and, with partners, (iii) intensify.
List of Members of the Regional Fisheries Policy Network (RFPN) Members,
Habitat management and related aspects between Cambodia and Laos, and between Cambodia and Vietnam. Sustainable Use of Neritic Tuna in the ASEAN Region Report of the Second Meeting of the Andaman Sea Sub-Region Report of the Meeting of Technical Experts on the Management of. Notes: The publications produced between 2007 and 2017 have been uploaded to the SEAFDEC website (total item = 76) and from 2017 all SEAFDEC publications have been transferred to the SEAFDEC repository.
Resources in the Southeast Asian region and the development of an ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EAFM) as an alternative approach.
List of Full-time Project Staff from 2013-2019
Financial Report 2019
Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Variance %used Notes. Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Variance %used Notes. Workshop on finalizing the Gender Equality Toolkit addressing the issue of gender equality. 5.Obj1.GOT) Sub-regional consultation to develop action/management strategies for Indo-Pacific mackerel (30 people) (UNEP/GEF).
5.Obj21.GOT) Co-host with local partner to organize National Forum: share lessons learned and best practices on habitat and fisheries. Support the development of sub-regional MCS networks for the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea based on existing national networks -. 6.Obj2.GOT).
