A World Bank-funded project for 12 countries in the East African and Indian Ocean regions attempts to allow fishers to maximize revenue but not deplete stocks. This interview took place on the sidelines of the Second Regional Workshop on Monitoring, Control and Surveillance, organized by the Bay of Bengal Programme, Inter- Governmental Organisation in Chennai during 3 - 4 October 2018

Mauree, Daroomalingum

Roshan, Manas

Venugopalan, N.

Aquatic Commons

46
SAMUDRA REPORT NO. 80
MCS
Interview
Fishing for the Future
A World Bank-funded project for 12 countries in the East African and Indian Ocean regions 
attempts to allow fishers to maximize revenue but not deplete stocks
Q: Good morning. Could you tell us about the SWIOFish1 project and how it would help 
fishers and coastal communities in 
your region?
A: Thank you for giving me 
this opportunity to interact on this 
SWIOFish1 project. This is a World 
Bank-funded project destined for 12 
countries in the East African and Indian 
Ocean regions (with the exception of 
Yemen and Somalia). These countries 
are part of the South West Indian 
Ocean (SWIO) Fisheries Commission. 
There was an outgoing World Bank 
initiative called the South West Indian 
Ocean Fisheries Project – the SWIOFP 
project – which was phased out. The 
countries belonging to the SWIOFP 
area made a plea to the World Bank 
to ensure sustainability of the project. 
That was how this new project came 
into operation in 2015. It is called 
the First South West Indian Ocean 
Fisheries Governance and Shared 
Growth Project. 
This is a very diverse region 
where most of the fishers – operating 
very close to the shore – earn their 
living from the exploitation of marine 
resources up to 12 nautical miles from 
the shoreline, and beyond. But these 
traditional communities are among the 
poorest in each country of the region. 
You also have the five Indian Ocean 
Commission (IOC) island states which 
command a large exclusive economic 
zone (EEZ). With the Blue Economy 
This interview with Daroomalingum 
Mauree (d.mauree@coi-ioc.org), 
Regional Project Co-ordinator, SWIOFish1, 
Commission of the Indian Ocean, Mauritius, 
was conducted by N Venugopalan and 
Manas Roshan of ICSF( icsf@icsf.net). The 
interview took place on the sidelines of the 
Second Regional Workshop on Monitoring, 
Control and Surveillance, organized by 
the Bay of Bengal Programme, Inter-
Governmental Organisation in Chennai 
during 3 - 4 October 2018. The transcript  
was prepared by Mythili D. K. 
(mythilidk@arm-c.com)
...these traditional communities are among the poorest in 
each country of the region...
now becoming the fundamental 
paradigm, fishers are at the core of 
development efforts. 
The regional project sets out 
minimum terms and conditions for all 
foreign fishing vessels who take licences 
from the respective countries to fish in 
their national EEZs and the high seas. 
The conditions must be uniform for the 
region. The maximum potential catch 
in each country’s waters will determine 
the financial contribution which the 
countries will pay besides the licence 
fees. We want to harmonise the licence 
fees across the board per tonnage and 
not on stock size or potential. The 
countries are toying with the idea of 
a common front in terms of setting up 
a South West Indian Ocean Fisheries 
Framework Agreement. 
Q: How are these agreements 
different in impact from the EU-
Mauritania Agreement, for example, 
in terms of local development?
A: The fisheries framework 
agreement which those countries want 
to put in place will be an entity that will 
negotiate on their behalf, as in the case 
of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries 
Agency (PFFA). The situation, however, 
is different. In the Pacific, 90 per cent 
of the catch is from the EEZ and 10 per 
cent from the high seas, whereas in the 
Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) 
area, where these 12 countries operate, 
the distribution is 50-60 per cent from 
the EEZ and around 40-50 per cent 
from the high seas. So a configuration 
is being built up to have a centralized 
unit to negotiate with the distant-water 
fleet to fish in their EEZs.
In the present fisheries partnership 
agreement, there are plenty of 
infrastructure elements in place as a 
result of the fisheries sector support 
policy. The new agreement will allow 
these countries to negotiate with the 
DECEMBER 2018
47
European Union (EU) for licences, which 
binds them to ensure transparency and 
monitoring. The project has also got a 
relationship with IOTC which meets 
annually, where the countries are 
exposed to a series of proposals tabled 
by individual member countries. 
We have been working on a 
commonality of interest and ideas 
before putting up proposals at the IOTC 
meeting to ensure that the project 
works in the interests and needs of 
the region and its industry and the 
fisher community. There are several 
mechanisms  already in place – the South 
African Development Community 
(SADC), the Indian Ocean Commission, 
the IOTC, the Intergovernmental 
Authority on Development (IGAD) 
and the Eastern and Southern African 
Economic Partnership Agreement. We 
try to avoid duplication of projects and 
wastage of resources. We will soon 
set up a regional monitoring control 
surveillance co-operation centre in 
Mozambique to which all the countries 
will be invited to participate. 
Tracking down and fighting illegal, 
unreported and unregulated (IUU) 
fishing is important in exporting your 
products. The issue of subsidies is also 
very important. Each country under the 
SWIOFC umbrella is entitled to take 
either a loan or a grant from the World 
Bank. Only two countries – Mauritius 
and Seychelles – have to repay the loan 
because of their gross domestic product 
(GDP) levels, unlike, say, the Comoros, 
Tanzania, Madagascar, Mozambique 
and Maldives.
The countries of the region are 
bound to integrate the needs of the 
fisher community into the spheres of 
development and at the same time, 
increase the participation of women 
in fisheries. They also need to train 
their fisher community in new fishing 
techniques. The project will also seek to 
enhance proper recording of statistical 
data using electronic media like mobile 
phones. 
Q: How does this project synergise 
with the projects on the Voluntary 
Guidelines for Securing Sustainable 
Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context 
of Food Security and Poverty 
Eradication (the SSF Guidelines) 
happening in the same countries? 
A: All projects that are being 
implemented at the national level – 
whether it is boatbuilding, security-
at-sea measures, gear development, 
preservation of fish products, avoiding 
wastage, and developing landing 
infrastructure – must indirectly have a 
relationship and correlation with the 
SSF Guidelines. And they are approved 
only after widespread discussion and 
gap analyses. 
Let me give you a concrete example 
now. In Mauritius, we have an island 
called Rodrigues. It’s a dependency 
of Mauritius. This island witnessed 
massive destruction and overfishing 
of the octopus fishery, leading to the 
closure of the fishery. Management 
measures were put in place and fishing 
effort diverted to other alternative 
job opportunities. And finally, after 
a two-year closure, the stocks were 
rehabilitated. And now Zanzibar is 
following suit through the network. 
A similar project is taking place 
in Madagascar, which has a very 
long coastline that makes it difficult 
to regulate fisheries management 
measures. The ongoing project 
attempts to mark boats in the crab 
fishery. The boat marking now will 
form the basis of identification and a 
starting point to determine the level 
of fishing effort. Thus, every project is 
tailored to the needs and requirements 
of each country. 
In the case of the fight against 
illegal, unreported and unregulated 
(IUU) fishing at the regional and 
national levels, with the introduction 
of monitoring, control and surveillance 
(MCS) measures and vessel monitoring 
system (VMS), there is better policing 
of the waters. We should not think that 
only the distant-water fishing fleets 
and the big fleets are playing havoc in 
our waters. With improved technology 
and techniques, local vessels are also 
involved in IUU fishing. Through the 
The project will also seek to enhance proper recording of 
statistical data...
M C S
48
SAMUDRA REPORT NO. 80
MCS network, we can now track the 
movements of all the licensed vessels 
and cross-check them against the 
database of the monitoring centre. 
Q: Once the external assistance 
of SWIOFish1 project gets over, 
what about the local capabilities 
of these governments to develop 
a national legislation and policies 
which support the development of 
the local fishing communities as well 
as coming together for developing 
action plans at the regional level?
A: Within the national programme, 
SWIOFish will try to assist all countries 
to improve upon their national 
legislation for fisheries. Any country 
having problems to adhere to the 
1995 Code of Conduct for Responsible 
Fisheries will be given the opportunity 
to contract out a consultant to come to 
their country and assist them. When 
SWIOFish1 ends in September 2021, 
SWIOFish2 is waiting on the sidelines. 
SWIOFish2 will give the fishers an 
opportunity to attend international 
meetings, meet with the fishers 
community, articulate the voices of the 
fishers at inter-sessional discussions so 
that the project meets their needs. 
Eight countries will benefit from 
SWIOFish2. They are all island states, 
namely, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, 
Mauritius, Seychelles, Comoros and 
Madagascar, which will bear the brunt 
of climate change and erosion – all 
small islands. We have to make the 
member countries realize that they 
cannot depend eternally on foreign 
technical assistance. There is a need 
to create a trust fund to show their 
commitment, a fund that will drive the 
process of sustainable development of 
their fisheries. 
There is a great possibility that 
funds will come from the Dr. Fridtjof 
Nansen Programme to sustain the 
research work that is needed for all 
the 12 countries. There is an ongoing 
project of the Swedish Development 
International Agency (SIDA). We are 
presently also working on a SWIOFC–
Nairobi Convention joint probe 
document, particularly targeted at 
artisanal fishers. 
Q: For all the 12 countries?
A: For all the 12 countries, yes. We 
want to understand what are likely 
to be the impacts of the fisheries 
management measures on shrimp, 
crab and demersal fisheries, as well as 
their impacts on the marine ecosystem 
in terms of overexploitation, climate 
change, and pollution. In the Cotonou 
Agreement with the EU, all the African, 
Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP) 
countries will benefit from financial 
assistance for the development of their 
respective sectors. Aid will also come 
from the European Development Fund, 
which can be used for MCS activities. 
Q: How is the revenue obtained 
from distant-water fishing nations 
for accessing your EEZ used?
A: These fees are paid into the 
treasury of the Ministry of Fisheries 
and directed into the central treasury of 
each country. The fisheries partnership 
agreements have two elements – one 
is the fisheries sector support policy, 
the other is the financial contribution 
of the EU. Besides that, is the fishing 
licence fee, which goes directly into the 
treasury. The fisheries support sector 
policy element goes to the central 
treasury but must be credited into the 
account of the Ministry of Fisheries for 
implementation of the project.
Q: Your project is focusing on 
governance, trade and MCS and you 
have done some support work in the 
crab fishery of Madagascar and in the 
sea cucumber fishery of Seychelles. 
How is the project trying to help the 
local fishing communities?
A: The sea cucumber fishery is a 
very high-value fishery for the markets 
of China, South Korea and Japan. But 
there has been an overexploitation 
of stocks. The fishers communities, 
especially in Seychelles, have grouped 
together into an organization to ensure 
the manageability of sea cucumber 
stocks at a sustainable level. Limits have 
been imposed on the fishing season and 
the number of dives to extract the sea 
cucumber. Initially, there was a lot of 
With improved technology and techniques, local vessels 
are also involved in IUU fishing
I N T E R V I E W
DECEMBER 2018
49
resistance to the strategy to cut down 
the fishing effort. But now, through 
training and discussions, the stocks are 
recovering. 
Take the octopus fishery of 
Rodrigues. Whenever there is a closed 
season, the Rodriguan administration 
tries to give the fishers alternative 
jobs – like cleaning backyards and 
streets, scavenging work, or any other 
paid work. The seasonal closure helps 
reduce undue pressure on the stock and 
allows for recovery. The result – fatter 
octopus at the end of the closure. 
What we are driving at through 
the SWIOFish project is that these 
fisheries must only be developed at 
a sustainable level, and they must be 
controlled to allow fishers to maximize 
revenue but not deplete the stocks. 
Most of the project has got this synergy. 
In Mauritius there is a limited entry in 
place identical to a quota allocation 
mechanism whereby those who cannot 
use their quota during a given year can 
have them redistributed to performing 
vessels to satisfy market requirements. 
Q: Could you say something 
more about the structure of how 
the quota is distributed among the 
communities?
A: For the artisanal fishery, at 
this point in time, it is an open-access 
fishery. So there’s no quota. The sea 
cucumber fishery in Seychelles and 
Mauritius is a very controlled fishery, 
with quotas allocated based on research 
of the stock potential, in an honest, fair 
http://www.swiofishznz.go.tz/index.php 
SWIOFISH 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ywc
Eti6fVxQ&feature=youtu.be--   
Film: Fisheries and Aquaculture in 
the SWIO Region: Best Practices and 
Lessons Learned
For more
What we are driving at through the SWIOFish project is that these fisheries must only be developed at a sustainable level, and they must be 
controlled to allow fishers to maximize revenue but not deplete the stocks
and reasonable manner. If this supply 
is interrupted, then we have to import 
fish. And we are importing a lot from 
India and the Far East because we don’t 
have enough fish in Mauritius. 
Q: And the Mauritian octopus 
fishery has almost come back to 
sustainable resource levels?
A: Yes, for Rodrigues it has come 
to the sustainable level. But not for 
Mauritius, which includes Rodrigues. 
M C S
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MCS (monitoring, control and surveillance): fishing for the future

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MCS (monitoring, control and surveillance): fishing for the future

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