Fisheries policy, governance & management

How can you build a strong governance and management system for your fishery and community? Fisheries governance systems, formal or informal, help make and enforce rules about our fisheries. Co-management and participatory decision-making help ensure that fisheries management benefits local communities. Start here to learn about secure tenure and co-management and explore other resources in the sub-categories below.

Subcategories

Resources

Cases Concerning Indigenous People's Rights and Fisheries

The report is based on previous publications and cases compiled by the Danish Institute for Human Rights, input from the Expert Meeting organised at the margins of the 2023 Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, as well as additional desk research. It was developed and published with financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) through the project “Sustainable Oceans – Pursuing a human rights-based approach to fisheries and aquaculture”

Estudio de costo beneficio de escenarios de recuperación de la pesquería de mero en Yucatán

En 2020, un estudio de escenarios y proyecciones de aprovechamiento de la pesquería de mero en Yucatán reportó que las cuotas de captura podrían ser parte de las medidas de manejo aplicables para la recuperación del stock, además de explorar los posibles efectos de la selectividad de las artes de pesca y la variabilidad ambiental en el stock de mero rojo. Es por lo anterior que el objetivo del presente estudio es evaluar los efectos en la población y los costos asociados en el corto y mediano plazo del establecimiento de una cuota de captura, así como la modificación de las tallas de captura a través de un incremento en el tamaño del anzuelo utilizado para su captura, bajo condiciones ambientales promedio y bajo dos escenarios de cambio climático.

Resultados de la implementación de un piloto de inversión de impacto para incrementar el valor de la pesquería de merluza del norte del golfo de California.

El presente texto es el reporte de resultados del proyecto “Propuesta para implementación de un piloto de inversión de impacto para incrementar el valor de la pesquería de merluza del norte del golfo de California” (Anexo 1) que entregamos en noviembre de 2021. El objetivo del piloto fue demostrar que modificando el manejo post-captura se puede incrementar la calidad del producto y con ello es posible obtener mejores márgenes de utilidad para todos los integrantes de la cadena de valor (i.e., producción, transformación y comercialización).

Fish Baskets Infographic

Fish Basket Infographic: An initiative for the sustainable management of multispecies fisheries

Putting the Voluntary Guidelines on Tenure and the Voluntary Guidelines on Small-scale Fisheries into Practice: A Learning Guide for Civil Society Organizations

This learning guide has been designed specifically to give civil society and grassroots organizations a deeper understanding of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) and the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines). The aim is to enable the members of these organizations and their constituents, especially small-scale fishers and fishworkers, to use the VGGT and SSF Guidelines meaningfully and effectively to improve the governance of tenure in their respective countries.

Nassau Grouper in Belize - Story of Carlton Young

Listen to the story that veteran fisherman, Carlton Young, has to share about the need for sustainable fishing practices. In his years of fishing, he has witnessed a marked decline in the fishing population.

Workshop Report: Financing Contexts of Locally Managed Marine Areas in WIO

Workshop report from CORDIO East Africa on the sustainable finance assessment protocol and the financing context of locally managed marine areas (LMMAs) in Kenya

Guidelines for Supporting Fishery Improvement Projects

With the 2022 update, the Guidelines explain how FIPs create opportunities to drive change through collective public-private action to address human rights and labor rights issues. To identify social risks, the Guidelines recommend that FIPs use the Social Responsibility Assessment Tool for the Seafood Sector (SRA), a rapid assessment tool that FIPs can use to identify areas of risk related to social issues, or similar tool.

Piloto para incrementar el valor de la pesquería de merluza del norte del Golfo de California

Este piloto parte de la premisa que al mejorar el manejo post-captura de la merluza del Golfo de California es posible incrementar la calidad del producto. Con ello, se podrían obtener mejores márgenes de utilidad para las y los integrantes de la cadena de valor (i.e., producción, transformación y comercialización) de esta especie.

The relationship between the governance of small-scale fisheries and the realization of the right to adequate food in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals

This conceptual-level information note seeks to highlight the human rights aspects of the goals and targets relating to food security and small-scale fisheries (SSF), particularly from the perspective of the right to adequate food, and to demonstrate how this interrelationship plays out in the monitoring mechanisms established by relevant instruments.

Shark and Ray Recovery Fact Sheet 4 - Misool, Indonesia

Misool Island - an innovative conservation model incorporating tourism, community development and biodiversity protection has transformed a marine ecosystem.

Shark and Ray Recovery Fact Sheet 3 - Tubbataha, Philippines

Recovery of reef and tiger sharks in Tubbataha, Philippines: Three decades of conservation efforts at a remote Philippine coral reef complex – which have included plenty of trial and error as well as successes – have paid off, and today underpin one of the most important areas for sharks in the Coral Triangle.

Shark and Ray Recovery Fact Sheet 2 - Cabo Pulmo, Mexico

Recovery of tiger, bull, and reef sharks in Cabo Pulmo, Mexico: A bold decision from the local community – to give up their fishing rights and voluntarily extend the protection around their local reef – has played a critical role in the regeneration of one of Mexico’s most important shark hotspots.

Shark and Ray Recovery Fact Sheet 1 - Smalltooth Sawfish in Florida, USA

Smalltooth sawfish recovery in Florida, USA: Direct and indirect protection measures, public education and a long-term science-based recovery plan are bending the curve for a rare and iconic species in US waters.

Identifying Pathways for Climate-Resilient Multispecies Fisheries

These case studies – from Mexico, Cuba, and Chile – differ in data richness, governance structure, and management resources. The management systems are also in various stages of evolution from unmanaged to complete management of a single species but transitioning to multispecies management.

Marine-Related Learning Networks: Shifting the Paradigm Toward Collaborative Ocean Governance

This study investigates the emergence, key attributes, and outcomes of marine-related networks using semi-structured interview data from 40 key informants representing 16 different networks that operate around the world at local, national, regional, and global scales. Our findings indicate that marine-related learning networks form in response to knowledge and action gaps and the specific needs of network members, and they function to inform policy and improve ocean management.