What can your fishery and community do to prepare for natural disasters and climate change? Rising sea levels, storms, and pollution are some of the many threats facing small-scale fisheries and communities. Small-scale fisheries communities can adapt and increase resiliency to address these issues. Start here to learn more about disaster risks and climate change and explore more in the sub-categories below. 

Resources

COVID-19 impacts and adaptations in Asia and Africa's aquatic food value chains

We tracked the impacts of COVID-19 on aquatic food value chains in Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Myanmar and Nigeria during 2020. We assessed the availability and price of aquatic foods and production inputs using a high frequency panel survey of 767 actors from eight value chain nodes. We also conducted semi-structured phone interviews with 63 respondents in Bangladesh and online interviews with 100 aquatic food value chain actors and key informants from 17 sub-Saharan African countries. This information provides insights into the pathways by which the crisis has affected aquatic food value chain actors, the scale of those impacts and how they have adapted. These findings give rise to policy recommendations aimed at mitigating impacts in the present, assisting recovery and building a more resilient aquatic food system in the future.

Kokoly

Against a backdrop of extreme poverty, personal loss and a marine environment changing beyond her control, Kokoly lives on a knife edge. Filmed over four months, Kokoly follows a traditional Vezo fisherwoman Madame Kokoly - as she reflects on her live experiences and carries out her daily routine in and around the coastal waters of southwest Madagascar.

Resiliencia de las comunidades pesqueras de México ante COVID-19 Impactos económicos y sociales

Para contribuir a los esfuerzos nacionales y globales, Comunidad y Biodiversidad, A. C. (COBI) ha iniciado un proceso de consulta con pescadores en ocho entidades federativas de México para conocer los impactos económicos y sociales de la pandemia. Así como, los roles del estado y la distribución de apoyos, los efectos en la salud, las soluciones locales aplicadas por los pescadores, la igualdad de género, el uso de tecnología y el impacto ambiental. Este primer reporte refleja los impactos económicos y sociales inmediatos del COVID-19 y concluye con una serie de recomendaciones expresadas por el sector pesquero.

How is COVID-19 affecting the fisheries and aquaculture food sytems

The full range of activities required to deliver fish and fish products from production to the final consumer is subject to indirect impacts of the pandemic through new sanitary measures, changing consumer demands, market access or logistical problems related to transportation and border restrictions. This in turn has a damaging effect on fishers and fish farmers’ livelihoods, as well as on food security and nutrition for populations that rely heavily on fish for animal protein and essential micronutrients. This policy brief reviews on going challenges and proposes measures to protect production and income of the sector and the most vulnerable, as well as maintain operations and support the supply chain.

The Silent Wave - A fisheries cooperative in India responds to Covid-19

Shot during the peak of the first wave of Covid-19 in India, this documentary tells the story of how the fishermen and women of Kollam coped with the lockdown and the widespread disruptions in their fisheries. Responding to the crisis, the local fisheries cooperative introduced a major change to the prevalent auction system. The innovation was aimed at both ensuring the safety of the coastal fishing community, and correcting the power imbalance between fishers and traders. But the new system had some unforeseen consequences.

Dead fish is not manna

This publication brings to the frontline, issues that beg for attention in the fisheries sector. Chapter one of this publication, titled COVID-19 and Fisheries, highlights how the pandemic has affected the fisheries subsector. Chapter two, titled Dead Fish is not Manna, captures the peculiarities and challenges of fisheries in Nigeria noting the contaminated state of some of the fishes sold in the country's markets.