The EU, the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) signed a €40 million, five-year program, FISH4ACP, to boost the development of sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. FISH4ACP is an innovative EU-funded program devised with the ACP to be implemented by FAO. It will invest in value chains to stimulate inclusive growth, bolster food security and minimize impacts on the marine environment.
FISH4ACP will work with 10 value chains in 10 different ACP countries, aiming to maximize their economic returns and social benefits while minimizing the detrimental effects on natural habitats and marine wildlife. It will pay special attention to small-scale fisheries because of their potential to deliver economic and social benefits, particularly for women.
In Africa, the program will support both aquaculture and fisheries value chains. They include inland and marine fisheries, involving catfish, small pelagics, oyster, shrimp and tilapia value chains from Nigeria to Zimbabwe, and from Lake Tanganyika to São Tomé and Príncipe and the continent’s Atlantic shores.
In the Caribbean, FISH4ACP will concentrate on stocks of mahi-mahi and seabob shrimp in the Dominican Republic and Guyana respectively; in the Pacific, it will focus on tuna fisheries around the Marshall Islands, a sector with high potential on both European and American markets.
The agreement was signed in Oslo, at the Our Ocean 2019 conference. Representatives from governments, businesses, civil societies and research institutions were attending this global event to promote action for a clean, healthy and productive ocean.
“Within the ACP countries, there is a sense of urgency to boost our fisheries and aquaculture sectors because they greatly contribute to economic growth, decent jobs and food and nutrition security. We are happy to have our partners on board and launch this much-needed initiative, which will unlock the potential of fisheries and aquaculture in ACP regions,” said ACP secretary general, Dr Patrick Gomes.
