CEMLAWS Africa and CCM-UCC Commemorate world fisheries day 2024
World Fisheries Day is celebrated all around the world in commemoration of the vital role of fisheries in the lives of mankind.
In celebrating this day, the Centre for Maritime Law and Security Africa (CEMLAWS Africa) and the Centre for Coastal Management—University of Cape Coast (CCM—UCC) embarked on an advocacy and sensitization campaign on the destabilizing impacts of industrial fishing vessels on the ecosystem, community livelihoods, and small-scale fisheries.
This was to create awareness of the risks industrial vessels pose to local communities, as their activities not only threaten marine biodiversity but also undermine the traditional livelihoods of artisanal fishers who have fished these waters sustainably for generations.
CEMLAWS Africa, a non-governmental organization in collaboration with CCM-UCC as part of their US States Department-funded Distant Water Fishing Vessels Project titled “Promoting Transparency, Accountability, and Local Capacity to Address the Destabilizing Impacts of Foreign Distant Water Fishing Vessels in the Gulf of Guinea and in the Waters of Mauritania, promoted advocacy during the 2024 World Fisheries Day using flyers and stickers that had five clear messages on addressing the negative impacts of foreign-owned industrial fishing vessels in Ghanaian waters.
The message aims to raise public awareness among local artisanal fisher groups on the negative impacts of these industrial fishing vessels, particularly trawlers, which include IUU fishing, leading to the depletion of fish stocks and destabilizing local and artisanal livelihoods and fisheries value chains.
The advocacy messages called for stricter enforcement mechanisms through MCS on industrial fishing practices better protection for artisanal fishing zones, and community participation to protect their livelihoods and fisheries resources.
The campaign was conducted in several communities within the Western, Central, and Greater Accra Regions and is expected to continue to the Volta Region in subsequent days.
World Fisheries Day serves as an important reminder of the necessity of sustainably managing marine resources responsibly. The advocacy campaign by CEMLAWS Africa and CCM emphasized the significance of protecting the artisanal fishing industry from the negative impacts of the industrial fishing sector, inspiring community support for sustainable practices that respect traditional fishing methods and safeguard important habitats.