SEAFDEC-Sida Cooperation Project: Annual Progress Report 2009 and Activities Planned for 2010 was prepared by the Secretariat of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC). FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO-RAP FAO- Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. RCCRF Regionalization of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries RIDNIC-HRD Regional Inventory, Database and Information Network.
SEAFDEC-SEC-OPPC SEAFDEC-SEC Office of the Policy and Program Coordinator SEAFDEC-AQD SEAFDEC-Aquaculture Department.
Executive Summary of the 2009 Progress Report
Introduction
Illegal and uncontrolled fishing is rampant in the region and concerns have been raised at global, regional and national levels. The management of fishing activities needs to be urgently improved in the ASEAN region in response to declining fisheries resources and damage to coastal habitats. There is a need to control fishing effort to tackle overfishing, energy consumption and build adaptive capacity in the fishing sector.
Work in this direction was initiated by SEAFDEC in the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea. SEAFDEC provided the platform for member countries to discuss and address the issues of fisheries improvement in the Gulf of Thailand.
Project objectives
Development Objective
Immediate objective
Target outputs and activities
The first Andaman Sea Subregional Meeting, also aimed at promoting subregional cooperation and the development of subregional arrangements, was held on 20–22 October 2009 in Phuket, Thailand.
Process oriented outcomes towards reaching the objectives
Against this background, an important step was taken at a regional consultation in July 2009, where ASEAN member states and Papua New Guinea agreed to share information and try to develop a regional "vessel registration and inventory", the information to be shared, should also include aspects on port surveillance. Regarding the ASSP, the ASEAN Fisheries Consultative Forum (AFCF), a preparatory meeting held on 26-27 May 2009 in Bangkok, provided significant input into the process of developing an action plan for the AFCF. Processes ahead could be expected in the wake of the collaboration between FAO, IMO and ILO.
During its implementation, the project, this first year, did not encounter any major setbacks and the project is now running well and is recognized in the ASEAN region, the Andaman sub-region and the Andaman states.
Result orientation by output groups
The project successfully highlighted the importance of considering social development/social rights, including aspects of labor and the rights of coastal communities to maintain their livelihoods. The rights of fishermen and people engaged in coastal fishing, including basic human rights, were reviewed from the perspective of international conventions and presented at the above events. Various SEAFDEC and non-SEAFDEC events have provided greater awareness of the cross-sectoral nature of the responses needed to adapt to climate change and to begin by improving fisheries and habitat management, and to review outcomes from the perspective of mitigation and adaptation to the effects of climate change.
This can lead to some delays in the goal to see that all, or most of the links are in place.
Integration of habitat and fisheries management
Furthermore, the importance of oceanographic data (e.g., seasonal changes in water currents) in focus areas and the Andaman Sea as a whole was emphasized in anticipating the effects of climate change. Information on Hilsa (Tenualosa ilisha) was also introduced to the Andaman group as another important migratory species. Based on the recommendations of the Andaman Sea countries (as reflected above) the follow-up actions for the SEAFDEC-Sida project in the Andaman Sea sub-region.
Consider the importance of estuaries, deltas and river systems to the productivity of the Andaman Sea and its importance as a major source of water production.
Monitoring, Record and Control – large scale and small scale (coastal) fishing
In October 2009, the project organized the first meeting of the Andaman Sea sub-region in Phuket, Thailand. The event aimed to review and provide actionable recommendations in the context of the Andaman Sea on key issues of regional importance such as fishing capacity, IUU fishing, vessel registration, etc. The Andaman Sea Sub-Region meeting enabled cooperation among all countries of the Andaman Sea, including India, on aspects related to MCS and initiating the development of an MCS network for the Andaman Sea (by initially focusing on information sharing).
An institutional matrix on Monitoring, Control and Surveillance was presented and considered important to support the building of an MCS network for the Andaman Sea sub-region.
Local knowledge, cross cutting issues and safety at sea
Increased awareness of the Andaman States on legally binding Port State measures initiated by FAO and completed has been ensured. The Andaman Sea has not been identified as one of the sub-regions for the RPOA, but there is an agreement with the RPOA Secretariat that progress on cooperation in the Andaman Sea will also be reported to the RPOA Secretariat. In addition, it was emphasized that in order to facilitate the implementation of measures to increase resilience and improve the ability to adapt to the effects of climate change and the increased unpredictability of weather patterns, there is a need to increase the capacity, at various levels, to understand the impacts of climate change and the links to fisheries and habitat management.
Increased awareness was provided through various SEAFDEC and non-SEAFDEC events on the cross-cutting nature of responses needed to adapt to climate change and to initiate improvements in fisheries and habitat management and to review results in the perspective of mitigation of impacts and adaptation effects of climate change.
Policy dialogue and promotion of regional cooperation on fisheries
More details about the AFCF and the preparatory meeting are given below as the second event organized in 2009. The first event was The Second Gulf of Thailand meeting to promote sub-regional cooperation and the development of sub-regional events was held on 24. – February 26, 2009 in Bangkok. Adaptation and mitigation of the effects of climate change (Philippines) - Post-harvest fisheries and food security (Singapore).
The fourth event was the first Andaman Sea Sub-Regional Meeting, also aimed at promoting sub-regional cooperation and developing sub-regional agreements. Another important message has been the verification - through the responses of member countries and other organizations - on the strategy to raise common issues at the ASEAN level, at the sub-regional level and at the national/provincial level and in a process built on cooperation and the involvement of other organizations and resource persons from the region and specific provinces. The SEAFDEC-Sida project aims to facilitate dialogue between countries at the regional and sub-regional level, prioritizing the "Monitoring of national legislation and institutional arrangements related to fisheries management, habitat management and fishing capacity management, to combat illegal fishing. and climate change and adaptation" In order to effectively bring the legal aspects to the regional dialogue, SEAFDEC during 2009 has been able to include the legal aspect in the events organized so far and it has been emphasized that the implementation of the management measure cannot go beyond, or be stricter. than what is stated in the national legislations.
An institutional “flow diagram” was initiated on institutional responsibilities in the registration/licensing process. Another important cornerstone in establishing a common basis for regional and sub-regional agreements is to review international conventions and other agreements relevant to the management of fisheries, fishing capacity and habitats and climate change with a view to how they the ASEAN region is implemented. Subsequently, conventions and other international agreements are continuously monitored by the project and, depending on the agenda, are referred to during expert meetings, consultation and training events.
During 2009, there has been increased attention in connection with the work on "fishing vessel registration and inventory" about the relevance of some IMO conventions to fishing. The order of reference varies depending on the priorities of the agenda and the profile of the events.
Project Management and Coordination
Way Forward: Key Challenges and Activities for 2010
The results will be reflected in reports from on-site training and the second Andaman Sea Meeting (second quarter 2010). For 2010, follow up on the consultation process set up with FAO/RAP, BOBLME, MFK and the countries of the Andaman Sea (including India) and pay specific attention to space during on-site training. Indicators of progress can be found in agreements on jointly developed action plans by countries in the Andaman Sea and Southeast Asia to achieve the process.
Compile a list of existing and planned cross-border and sub-regional agreements around the Andaman Sea (link to 2.10 above). Indications by Andaman Sea States that they wish to address fishing capacity in the Andaman Sea. Year 1: Andaman Sea meeting report feedback on on-site meeting sequence.
The first round of results with feedback from the on-site training will be presented at the second Andaman Sea meeting (Q4 2010). Information to be provided as input to consultations and policy development around the Andaman Sea and in ASEAN. Include an introduction to plans for monitoring, recording and control of fishing capacity (MCS network link, 2.7) in the agenda of the Andaman Sea meeting (Sept/Oct 2009).
Reference to the Gulf of Thailand Meetings and the meeting on vessel registration and inventory (July Follow-up on the process of initiating the MCS networks in the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand. 2010: preserve the momentum and organize follow-up meetings in the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand ( background will be described in sections 1, 2 and 3 above) to improve the basis for sub-regional agreements Maintaining the focus established on the Andaman Sea maintains monitoring/sustaining momentum in other sub-regions (documented through reports and references from other partners).
Follow up on the relevance to the Andaman Sea on the regionally defined criteria to determine the national, sub-regional and transboundary importance of specific areas. Review available information on destructive fishing and aquaculture practices in the Andaman Sea and selected areas. Begin a process to establish an MCS network in the Andaman Sea similar to the initiative around the Gulf of Thailand by fourth quarter year one.
Summary Schedule for 2010
SEAFDEC-Sida Cooperation on adaptation 2009 – 2011, objectives and expected
Proposed Budget for SEAFDEC activities in follow up to climate change and
