TBTI Global was invited and participated at the first regional summit on small-scale fisheries for Africa held in the United Republic of Tanzania (URT) from 5th-7th of June, 2024. The summit was dubbed ‘Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines’. Invitation to TBTI Global, according to Prof. Riziki S Shemdoes (the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries, Tanzania) was based on the believe that it would contribute to the success of the events, its recognition for rectifying the marginalization of small-scale fisheries in national and international policies, and development of research and governance capacity to address global fisheries challenges.
The official opening ceremony was colourful with inclusion of different events. The symbolic celebration of the 10th anniversary of the SSF Guidelines and the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa (PFRS) implementation ignited the hall to lively mood. Dignitaries present included Honourable Abdallah H Ulega (Minister of Livestock and Fisheries, Tanzania), Honourable Dr. Micheal Bizwick Usi (Minister of Natural Resources and Climate Change, Malawi) and representative of Dr. Huyam Ahmed Mohammedelamin Salih (Director of AU-IBAR). Keynote speeches were delivered with Dr. Lilian J. Ibengwe (Tanzania National Coordinator, SSF Guidelines).
In her well received keynote address titled ‘Promoting Blue Justice for Small-Scale Fishers and Communities in Africa’ TBTI member Professor Moenieba Isaacs (PLAAS, South Africa) pointed out that scope of Blue Justice as it applies to small-scale fisheries include distributive justice, participatory and procedural justice perspective, and human rights. As expected, she revisited the conception and base of Blue Justice for small-scale fishers as an African concept based and informed by the social and economic struggles for justice in how rights were allocated in post-Apartheid South Africa and small-scale fishers’ rights to livelihoods, right to food, and right to be recognised. Highlights of presentation is presented in Box 1.
Prof. Moenieba Isaacs delivering the keynote
Prof. Shehu Akintola speaking during a panel session
In the panel session on ‘Interactive Dialogue: Advancing coordinated Concrete Action for Africa’s Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries’, moderated by Dr. Yahya Mgawe, TBTI member Professor Shehu Akintola congratulated the URT and people of Tanzania as well as the team that worked to earn Tanzania the right of place as the first country to implement the SSF Guidelines. He noted that this provides impetus for other Africa States to push for the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. He positioned that is a collaborative effort and there is the need for the deliberate involvement of the AU IBAR and Regional Economic Communities to join force with the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) in the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. He also mentioned the efforts of the TBTI Global in this direction. The panel also included Dr. Ndiaga Guyene (FAO-RAF, Ghana), Dr. Modesta Medard (WWF Tanzania), Ms. Lovin Kobusingye (NSA) and Dr. Elysee Nzohabonayo.
The URT prides herself as the first country in the region to implement the SSF Guidelines and lunched the National Plan of Action for Small-Scale Fisheries (NPOA-SSF). Other countries that have followed suit include Namibia, Uganda, Malawi and Madagascar. The summit seeks to promote the implementation of the SSF Guidelines, thus offering space for stakeholders in the small-scale fisheries in the continent through the three objectives: collectively plan and advise, getting to know each other, and sharing and learning. It is hoped that future summit would build on the success of the 2024 summit and be able to bring the better future for the small-scale fisheries in Africa.
In reflection, the work of TBTI Global compiled in the volume ‘The Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines – Global Implementation’ (Jentoft et al., 2017) remains a classic, comprehensive in terms of topics covered. It provided for me the first real awareness of the SSF Guidelines, three years after their launch in 2014 and underscored the significance of the TBTI contributions to the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. The SSF Summit did acknowledge this via the invitation and many times the summit’s giant television screen would draw inspiration from this book and some quotations from the article ‘Walking the Talk: Implementing the International Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries’ by Professor Emeritus Svein Jentoft, one of the TBTI co-founding members.
Box 1. Highlights from Prof. Isaacs' keynote on Blue Justice
