Management of Shared Inland Fisheries:Lessons from Lake Victoria (East Africa)

Ogutu-Ohwayo, R., and C.T. Kirema MukasaLake Victoria Fisheries Organization, P.O. Box 1625,

Jinja, UgandaEmail:lvfo-sec@lvfo.org

Importance of Inland Fisheries of Africa

Africa is rich in inland waters which have important artisanalsmall scale fisheries;

The water systems are also a sources of water, avenues for transport, & reservoirs for hydro power generation

The African Great LakesMost inland lakes in Africa are located in East Africa (Victoria, Albert, Tanganyika, Malawi & Turkana);These are among the most important lakes in the world with Lake Victoria the second largest and Tanganyika the second deepest;In addition to fisheries the lakes have the highest fish species diversity in the world;Management of these lakes is therefore of great national and international importance;Most of the lakes are shared between more than one country & the fisheries are under more than one jurisdiction which poses a management challenge.

Some of the methods used include:Licensing - not effective as effort is not controlled;Control of the type and mesh size of fishing gear;Control of the size of fish harvested;Closes seasons and periods;Closed fishing grounds; andThe size & mode of propulsion of crafts.

These management measures are some form of allocation of the fishery resources since they limit access to only segment of thefishery.

Historical Methods of Controlling Access

Methods of Allocating of Fisheries

Vary between countries, regions & fisheries;Are more complicated where the fisheries are shared by

more than one state;Can be achieved directly through of use rights/quota

systems or indirectly through restrictive measures;Right based & quota systems are more appropriate in

large commercial fisheries;Indirect methods are more applicable to artisanal small

scale fisheries characteristic of developing countries

This paper uses Lake Victoria to share experiences in management of shared inland fisheries with specific reference to resource allocation

Basic Characteristics of Lake Victoria FisheryShared by 3 countries (Kenya - 6%, Uganda - 43% & d Tanzania - 51%);Coastline of 3,450 km;Fishery consists of 3 species (Nile perch, Nile tilapia & R. argentea);Fishery Productions = 750,000 m.t;No of fish factories = 30Value of fish landed = US$ 400 m with US$ 250 in export;No of landing sites = 1,433No of fishing crafts = 153,066 small crafts of 5 – 8 m

No of gill nets targeting Nile perch & Tilapia = 1,233,052;No of seine nets targeting Dagaa = 8,601Basin pop. 30 m with limited employment opportunities; 10%

depend directly or indirectly on the fisheries;The lake is managed at national level

Characteristics of the Fish Stocks

Three Species fishery: Nile perch, Nile tilapia and Dagaa

Nile perch: Found all over lake; Grows to 200 cm; Matures at 55 cm (M) & 85 cm (F); Exploited using gill nets & Hooks.

Nile tilapia: Mainly inshore; Grows to 75 cm; Matures at 25 cm; Exploited using gillnets.

Dagaa: Found all over lake; Grows to 7 cm; Matures at 4cm; Exploited by ligh fishing using seine.

Managing Shared Inland Fisheries: The Lake Victoria Model

The EA States formed regional Organization the Lake Victoria Fisheries Organization (LVFO)

The LVFO formed programs through which to manage the lake; Working Groups (WGs) were formed at national & regional level to

implement programs.National WGs produce national guidelines for management of the

fisheries & these are harmonized into regional guidelines by Regional WGs (RWGs).

The guidelines are discussed by Organs of the LVFO & actions management actions agreed upon & adopted.

The agreed actions are implemented by national governments..

The Mandate of the LVFO

The mandate of LVFO was to promote cooperation among Partner States by Harmonizing National Measures, Developing and adoptingConservation and management measures for sustainable utilizationof the fisheries resources of Lake Victoria through:

Proper management & optimum utilization of fisheries;Generation of information for management of the fisheries

through research;Development and management of the information and database,

and dissemination of the information;Improvement of infrastructure & human resources capacity; &Providing a forum for discussion and making decisions on the

initiatives on the lake.

The Programs of the LVFO

The mandate of the LVFO are implemented at national and regional level through five programs are each with a number of WGs:

The Fisheries Management Program;

The Resource, Environmental and Socio-economic Research and Monitoring Program;

The Database, Information Communication and Outreach Program;

The Capacity Building Program; and

An Aquaculture Program

Fisheries Management Program:Develops and harmonizes fisheries policies, laws and

regulations;

Promotes adherence to fisheries laws and regulations;

Promotes participation of fisher communities in development & management of the fisheries through MBUs

Promotes compliance to fish quality, safety & value addition, and marketing.

Resources, Environmental & Socio-economic Research & Monitoring Program provides information on:

Catch composition & fishing effort;

Fishing gears and methods;

Abundance, composition, distribution & population structure of fish stocks;

Biological parameters of the fishes, lake productivity processes, & on the health of the fish habitat; and in

Fisheries socio-economics.

Database, Information, Communication and Outreach Program:

Develops and manage information and databases; andPackages and disseminate the information

The Capacity Building Program: Develops infrastructure and human resources capacity;

Aquaculture Program provides guidelines for aquaculture research and development in the Lake Victoria Basin.

The programs are implemented within and between different levels of governance from the village Beach Management Unit (BMU) level through different national levels to the regional EAC level

Levels of Implementation of the Programs

Implementation of Activities at National Level

NWGs in the fisheries management institutions formulate fisheries policies, laws & regulations, & enforce the laws & regulations.

NWGs in fisheries research institutions provide information on composition of the catches, fishing effort, fishing gears and methods, abundance, composition & distribution of the fishes, the biological parameters of commercial species & fisheries socio-economics.

NWGs produce national technical guidelines;

Implementation Processes

The RWG harmonize national guidelines into regional guideline and pass them to Scientific Committee (SC) or Fisheries Management Committee (FMC)

The SC identifies research requirements, review research methodologies & results & ensure dissemination of the results;

The FMC develops management policies & recommend management measures

Implementation Processes (Continued)

The Executive Committee (EC) reviews management and scientific guidelines from the SC & FMC agrees on fisheries management measures to be implemented & submit them to the Policy Steering Committee (PSC);

The PSC reviews & submit management measures to the LVFO Council of Ministers (CM);

The CM adopts fisheries management recommendations;

The management recommendations are then passed to the Partner States incorporated in national laws & implemented.

Implementation Through Projects

The LVFO programs are also implemented through regional projects e.g.

Lake Victoria Fisheries Research Project (1996-2002);Socio-economics of the Nile perch Project (2003– 2005);Lake Victoria Environmental Management Project (1997-

2004);Production and Marketing of value added fishery

Products in Eastern and Southern Africa (2003-2006);Implementation of a Fisheries Management Plan (IFM)

Project for Lake Victoria (2003-2008)

Implementation of a Fisheries Management Plan (IFMP) Project

Key activities of the project include:Improving in institutional mechanisms, policies, laws and

regulations;Monitoring the status of the fishery, fishing effort, fish

stocks, the fish habitat and socio-economic factors;Promoting compliance to fisheries laws and regulations

through patrols;Promoting stakeholder participation in management of the

fisheries through BMUs;Improving human resources capacity, fisheries

infrastructure office and laboratory space, community infrastructure, patrol boats, research vessels, and fish landing sites

One essential element of this system is promotion of community participation in management of fisheries- BMUs:

Develop by-laws, rules and/or regulations;Identify & recommend fishers for licensing thus involving

communties in resource allocation;Sensitise communities on fisheries issues & agreed

actions;Community policing & MCS at local level;Conflict resolutions at local level;Planning and making decisions for fisheries management,Collect utilize revenue

Community Engagement Through BMUs)

Current State in Resources Allocation

The LVFO has introduced indirect measures of fisheries allocation through:

LicensingLimiting the size of Nile perch & Nile tilapia harvested;Limiting the minimum mesh size of gill net used on the lake;Limiting fishing capacity – size of craftProhibiting use of certain gears & methods (mono-filament gillnets

beach seines, trawls, traps, weirs, cast-nets, use of dynamites and poison, & beating water); &

Implementing closed seasons & closed area restrictions;Harmonization these measures and ensuring that they are

incorporated in national laws;

Licensing:Limits entry in the fishery by nationals;Conditions for non-national are prohibitive

Limiting the Size of Fish HarvestedSlot size for Nile perch set at 50-85 cm;Min. size of Nile tilapia set at 25 cm;

Limiting Mesh Size of Gillnet and HooksMin. mesh size of gillnet has been set at 127 mm (5 “);Fixing hook size (8-11?) is being explored

Limiting Fishing PowerLimits access to fishing ground;Vessel <5 m (Bawo Tatu) prohibited because they fish in

breeding grounds of Tilapias.

Prohibiting Certain Fishing Gears and MethodsBeach seines are not selective & destroy tilapia nests. Trawls nets are not selective & destroy gear of small

scale fishers. Cast-nets are used in breeding areas of tilapia. Dynamites and Poison are all highly unselective kill non-

target organisms

Restricting Fishing Times and SeasonsAvoid fishing during breeding season & by-catch.Have been applied in Dagaa fishery in the Kenya.

Limiting Fishing in Certain AreasProtect juvenile fish & biodiversity;Efforts being made to protect refugia of endangered

species (rocky outcrops, marginal areas, and satellite lakes;Restricting fishing at the mouths of rivers.

ChallengesThe main challenge is compliance - law enforcement;BMUs involvement is expected to improve appreciation

of relevant measures & to improve compliance