How can your fishery help build stronger communities? Small-scale fisheries are often social and economic engines for their communities. Responsible small-scale fisheries governance requires understanding the socioeconomic circumstances of all fishery-dependent stakeholders and requires finding ways to develop communities so that all people have decent work, access to essential services, and the ability to meet their basic needs. Start here to learn about social development, employment, and decent work, and explore the sub-categories below to find ways you can help build stronger communities. 

Resources

Strengthening Conservation Community Enterprises (CCEs) E-Course

CCEs, such as SSF and Aquaculture cooperatives, are small, locally-run businesses providing livelihoods that also support the protection of habitats and biodiversity. However, CCEs often face significant obstacles in trying to make a sustainable living. Whether it’s the administrative challenge of establishing a business or a lack of capital to get things off the ground, these obstacles can prevent many enterprises from reaching their full potential. To address this, WWF developed a self-paced e-learning course to help NGOs and community-based organizations better support communities in strengthening CCEs

Illuminating Hidden Harvests (IHH) Report

The IHH study was carried out in support of the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines), themselves developed in recognition of the plight of small-scale fishers, fishworkers and associated communities and released as a contribution to the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture 2022. The purpose of this report is to contribute to a more holistic understanding of what small-scale fisheries are, their importance, and why they are essential to efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Financing fisheries in Africa: Case studies from the United Republic of Tanzania and Zambia

This brochure presents two case studies of institutions successfully providing financial services to small-scale fisheries in Africa. The two case studies were identified during a regional market demand and supply survey of financial service provision to small scale fishers, carried out by the African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (AFRACA) and the Global network for capacity building to increase access of small-scale fisheries to financial services (CAFI-SSF).