At the SSF Summit, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF Guidelines) with an inspiring session filled with passionate discussions led by small-scale fishers. This dynamic gathering explored the current status of SSF Guidelines implementation at national, regional, and global levels to inform future actions.
Voices of Small-Scale Fishers
The discussions centered on priority concerns such as tenure rights and social development. SSF representatives unitedly called for the recognition and respect of traditional and customary rights and territories. They condemned the exclusion of small-scale fisheries from COFI’s agenda, while asserting their right to participate in decision-making processes affecting them. What we need is a ‘differentiated approach to small-scale fisheries’ remarked the SSF representatives.
During an interactive session between SSF representatives and national governments, countries with existing National Plans of Action (NPOA) for SSF Guidelines implementation urged others to follow suit. Topics like social protection, gender concerns, and climate change frequently emerged, highlighting the need for a differentiated approach to small-scale fisheries.
Attended by 145 participants from 47 countries, the second SSF Summit raised awareness on the importance of small-scale fisheries in the sustainable use of the ocean and stressed the need to implement the SSF guidelines to achieve the sustainable development goals.
Weapons of Mass Collaboration
All through the discussions in the SSF summit, the SSF representatives called out for collaborations with true and meaningful participation. “What we need is weapons of mass collaborations”, said Anaru Fraser, IITC. “The most important thing is partnerships. Bringing them all together … We can really achieve and move from words to action.”, reiterated Nicole Franz, Fisheries and aquaculture department, FAO. “Nothing about us without us”, stated Herman Kumara, WFFP and IPC. The statements made in COFI from different angles converge to the need for collaborations and meaningful participation.
In the purview of such discussions on collaborations RISE UP managed to convene meetings with different SSF organizations and representatives to discuss future directions.
Navigating the Future: Highlights from the 36th Session of the UN FAO Committee on Fisheries
The 36th session of COFI, held from July 8 to 12, 2024, brought together representatives from member states, intergovernmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations to address key issues in global fisheries and aquaculture. Major themes of discussions included sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, climate change impacts, small-scale fisheries, blue transformation, and technological innovations.
Countries like India, Chile, Tanzania, the Philippines, and Peru emerged as strong supporters of SSF. The Philippines and Indonesia, who already developed NPOAs for the implementation of the SSF Guidelines, encouraged other member states to follow their lead.
Many countries, inspired by the SSF Summit, called for the formal inclusion of small-scale fisheries in COFI’s agenda. Countries also called for regional collaborations to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, including the strengthening of port state measures and the promotion of transparency in fishing activities.
Between Dialogue and Declarations
The 36th session of COFI also witnessed an array of side events discussing different facets of sustainable use of ocean and ocean governance including the BBNJ. The parties recommended the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines on SSF and encouraged the SSF Summit to be held every two years prior to COFI.
The committee called for effective cooperation between fisheries and environmental bodies at national and regional levels for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and urged the members to ratify the BBNJ treaty.
The session concluded with the adoption of a declaration reaffirming the commitment of member states to sustainable fisheries and aquaculture practices. Member states expressed strong support for the Blue Transformation initiative, committing to actions that will increase the sustainability and productivity of aquatic food systems.
How far COFI can push national governments to implement the SSF Guidelines remains to be seen.