The Future of Marine Fisheries in the African Blue Economy: Challenges and opportunities
The African Natural Resources Centre, in collaboration with the Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department, will host a webinar on 10 May 2022 to present the findings of a study on "The Future of Marine Fisheries in the African Blue Economy: Challenges and Opportunities".
The concept of the blue economy has developed in recent years for the comprehensive and sustainable management of marine and coastal areas and their natural resources. One of its fundamental principles is a holistic approach to all sectors of activity, preserving the quality of ecosystem goods and services in the long term. Marine fisheries are a crucial sector in this blue economy, both in terms of employment and contribution to national economies and food security.
The study carried out by the African Natural Resources Centre analyses the challenges that this sector will have to face by 2050 in meeting the demand of a growing population while facing the impacts of climate change. It identifies ways to ensure the sustainability of marine fisheries within the framework of a blue economy that emphasizes the services provided by healthy ecosystems.
The webinar will bring together policymakers, regional management authorities, representatives of regional economic communities, the private sector and development partners active in fisheries management and the blue economy.
Key speakers:
Prof. Pierre Failler is the Director of the Centre for Blue Governance, University of Portsmouth, UK. He holds the UNESCO Chair in Ocean Governance. He has coordinated complex research projects with multidisciplinary teams for more than 25 years in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Pacific coastal countries, in collaboration with national research institutions and universities and policy bodies. He recently coordinated the Blue Economy Strategy for the African Union, the Regional Action Plan for the Blue Economy of the Indian Ocean Commission, the Blue Economy Strategy of the Intergovernmental Authority for development (IGAD) and the Blue Economy Strategy for Seychelles, Guinea and Madagascar. He has authored and co-authored about 150 journal articles, book chapters and research reports. He is also a scientific evaluator for several research councils in Europe, North America, Africa, and Asia.
Dr Hashali Hamukuaya holds a PhD degree in marine fisheries from University of Port Elizabeth, South Africa (2000). He holds a MSc degree in Marine Environmental Sciences from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, State University of New York(link is external), Stony Brook. Recently, Dr Hamukuaya has led or been involved in several high-level consultancies on ocean governance and aquatic environmental management on behalf of regional and international entities, including the Benguela Current Convention, AU-IBAR, African Development Bank, European Union and the UNDP. From 2008 to 2018, Dr Hamukuaya served as the Executive Secretary of the Benguela Current Convention(link is external) and between 2005 and 2008 held a similar position at South East Atlantic Fisheries Organisation(link is external) (SEAFO). For over a decade, he served in the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Namibia. Dr Hamukuaya has authored and edited a wide range of scholarly articles.
Professor Rashid Sumaila is a University Killam Professor and Canada Research Chair in Interdisciplinary Ocean and Fisheries Economics at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, and the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, University of British Columbia. Dr. Sumaila holds a Ph.D. (Economics; University of Bergen) and a B.Sc. (Ahmadu Bello University). Sumaila has won several prestigious awards, including the 2021 SSHRC Impact Award. He was inducted into the Fellowship of the Royal Society of Canada in 2019. He is an International Scientific Advisory Board Member, Stockholm Resilience Centre and Chair of the International Scientific Advisory Board of the World Bank Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience. He serves on several journal editorial boards, including those of Science Advances, Environmental & Resource Economics, and Marine Policy. Sumaila has spoken publicly at the UN Rio+20, the WTO, the White House, the Canadian Parliament, the African Union, St James Palace, and the British House of Lords.
Dr Ndiaga Gueye is currently Senior Fisheries and Aquaculture Officer at the FAO Regional Office for Africa in Accra, a position he has held for the past 6 years. In this capacity, he is the Secretary of the Committee on Fisheries for the Eastern Central Atlantic (CECAF) and the Committee on Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture for Africa (CIFAA). He started his professional career in 1984 in Senegal, which he left at the end of 2004, when he was National Director of Fisheries, to join the Fisheries Department at FAO headquarters. He held the position of Secretary of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) until June 2009 when he was appointed to the DRC as FAO Representative. He began his current position at the end of 2015.
Dr. Mohamed Seisay has a PhD in Fisheries Science from the University of Wales (UK). Dr. Seisay has over three decades of experience in fisheries management in Africa and specializes in fisheries resources evaluation, forecasting methodology, Policy and Governance. He worked at the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources in Sierra Leone and has extensive field experience in Africa. He is currently Fisheries Management Expert at the African Union InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources, where he provides technical support and coordinates implementation of the policy framework and reform strategy for fisheries and aquaculture in Africa. He also facilitates implementation of the Africa Blue Economy Strategy.
Mr. Seraphin Dedi is the Executive Secretary of the Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC). A natural resource management engineer, Mr. Dedi has 25 years of experience in fisheries management, participatory governance and negotiation of fisheries agreements. He is a key regional coordinator, supporting member states to engage with international processes, including the Global Record of fishing vessels, the Cape Town Agreement, and the Port State Measures Agreement. He has led in the preparation of policy documents in fisheries, such as the 10 years FCWC Strategic Action Plans and contributed to the World Bank 2019 report on Climate Change and Marine Fisheries in Africa. Mr. Dedi initiated and is facilitating the West Africa Task Force as a dedicated mechanism to combat IUU fishing and protect biodiversity in fisheries in West Africa.
Dr Eshete Dejen is a Program Manager for Sustainable Environment and Coordinator of Blue Economy, Agriculture and Environment Division of IGAD, Djibouti. He holds a PhD from Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands. He published more than 50 scientific papers and book chapters. He received several awards for his contribution to the sustainable management of Lake Tana. From March 2009 to February 2014 he served as fisheries technical officer at FAO Subregional office for East Africa and provided technical backstopping for East African countries. He also contributed to the IGAD regional fisheries and aquaculture strategy (2016-2020) and Regional Blue Economy strategy (2021-2025).