ENTERPRISE ST HELENA

TERMS OF REFERENCE

COMMERCIAL FISHERIES DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

Background

Commencement of the £250m airport construction contract has started the transformation of St Helena to a high-value tourism driven economy. Whilst developing an island-wide sustainable tourism offering is the key priority in the coming years, the construction, and subsequent operation of the airport at the end of 2015, is creating many opportunities for on-island and inward investors, be they large or small, including opportunities for the further development of the fisheries sector.

The Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will have a pivotal role in helping to shape the creation of a sustainable and financially successful commercial fishery.

There is already a small but important inshore fishery that has, over the past five years (2006-11), landed on average approximately 500 tonnes per year of high quality products, mainly tuna, for the local and export markets. There is also now a keen interestin developing a commercial fishery in the offshore waters within the 200 nautical mile Exclusive Fishing Zone by both local and overseas partiesbased on evidence from past fishing efforts, and SHG is keen to explore the potential to do so sustainably.

The fishery operates within the area overseen by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Landings are currently made through an intermediary agency to a modern commercial processing and storage facility on the island, offering a guaranteed market for all that the local fishery can produce. St Helena currently meets the required hygiene standards for the export of fish to the European Union.

The recently published White Paper on the Overseas Territories by the UK Government highlights the critical role of Overseas Territory Governments in sustainably managing their important natural resources. St Helena has also developed a Sustainable Development Plan that identifies economic, social and environmental development as its three National Goals. In that context St Helena is now seeking to develop a coherent strategy for the fisheries sector to help manage our valuable marine resources sustainably and look at the opportunities to further develop a sustainable fisheries sector which has the potential to make an important contribution to growth of the local economy through increased production from the inshore and offshore components of the fishery, and possibly through licensing agreements with foreign fishing vessel operators. A number of initiatives are currently being considered or pursued by Enterprise Saint Helena and others, but at present there is no overall strategy for the fisheries sector within which these can be managed in a coherent way.

The island is an open economy that welcomes expertise and capital; it is easy to invest, whether to start a new, or develop an existing, business. A UK Overseas territory, St Helena is a very stable and reliable environment, has the added benefits of a great tropical climate, is very safe (the police are unarmed!) and friendly – all this and an exciting economic future.

The Sustainable Economic Development Plan (SEDP) sets out the island’s integrated approach to economic development and links the different elements of St Helena Government policy. Ideally the post holder will take the island through to airport opening; the initial appointment will be for two years, renewable by mutual agreement.

Department: Enterprise St Helena (ESH)

Job Purpose: The Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will be responsible for working with on-island stakeholders to achieve positive outcomes of initiatives focused on sustainable fisheries management, in particular the potential for increasing commercial activity within this industry in a sustainable manner that will contribute to the growth of the economy and take advantage of the new opportunities afforded by the establishment of air access. This is a rewarding and hands-on role which will require analytical and operational review and provide practical, constructive advice and recommendations for improvement.

Supervision:The Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will report directly to the Director of Enterprise on day to day issues, however will also liaise closely with the Private Sector Development Manager and external stakeholders.

Job Outline:

  1. Help industry stakeholders identify opportunities. Air access is presenting on-island business with completely new opportunities and a more open and competitive business environment. It is vital that all local fishing industry stakeholders are provided with support to enable them to identify and plan to take advantage of these opportunities.

The Commercial Fisheries Development Managerwill need to meet with every on-island stakeholder and individual business operating within the fishing industry supply chain, to enable a review of their situations to be undertaken, assess what work has been undertaken to date, and identify potential development opportunities.

The Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will also need to undertake a review of the existing industry structure, assess existing resources (both human and physical), and make recommendations for organisational improvements.

  1. Help stakeholders formulate sustainable strategies. Having assessed the existing situation, local industry stakeholderswill need to formulate and agree appropriate strategies that can be implemented in an economically, socially and environmentally sustainable manner. The Commercial Fisheries Development Managerwillprovidesupport formulating and testing strategies, including overseeing data and science input where necessary. This may also include elements of skills development.
  1. Advisory services. Once industry stakeholders have formulated strategies, they need to implement their plans in a sustainable manner. This will require technical inputs from the Commercial Fisheries Development Managerthat may span a number of areas including:

a)Promoting opportunities for the establishment of a small locally based offshore fishing fleet;

b)establishing exploratory fisheriesand assessing the potential for licensing of foreign fishing vessels operating within St Helena’s EFZ with appropriate licensing policy and supporting legislation;

c)working with other departments to ensure a co-ordinated approach to marine management within St Helena, including with respect to environmental protection and other economic interest;

d)facilitating potential organisational restructuring within the industry where necessary, to ensure that limited resources are being used cost effectively and in a sustainable manner;

e)further development of the inshore fishery, local processing and marketing arrangements, including the establishment of a St Helena brand for local fish and fish products;

f)applying for, and achieving, recognised accreditation standards (such as Marine Stewardship Council certification) for both the local fisheries and also local fish products;

g)enhancing the commercial and regulatory relationships between the St Helena Government (SHG), the St Helena Fisheries Corporation (SHFC), Argos Helena Ltd/Argos Atlantic Cold Stores Ltd, and the St Helena Fishermen’s Association;

h)the development of proposals and business cases for locally-based fishing enterprises, particularly in the areas of Sports Fishing, Offshore Fishing, and Secondary Processing;

i)assisting local stakeholders with related business development issues, such as those associated with Business Planning and Financial Modelling, Partnership Agreements, Commercial Contracting, Project and Supply Chain Management.

The Commercial Fisheries Development Manager may also be called upon to provide support on request to the Fisheries Section of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Directorate, the Competent Authority within the Health and Social Welfare Directorate, the Nature Conservation Division within the Environmental Management Directorate, and the Fishing Industry Working Group, including assistance with the assessment of investment proposals.

It is expected that the provision of such technical advice and support will involve liaison with stakeholders both in St Helena and the UK, including, for example: the St Helena Government; the St Helena Fisheries Corporation; the St Helena Fishermen’s Association; Argos Atlantic Cold Stores Ltd; the Department for International Development; the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; the Joint Nature Conservation Committee; the Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science;the Marine Stewardship Council; non-governmental organisations; technical advisers such as the Marine Resources Assessment Group; and any academic institutions with a knowledge of, or interest in the marine resources of St Helena (e.g. University of Newcastle, University of Exeter, and the South Atlantic Research Institute).

  1. Identify types of finance. The Commercial Fisheries Development Managerwill help local entrepreneurs to identify types of finance and appropriate methods available (e.g. trade financing from suppliers) including loan or grant capital.
  1. Up-skill the Enterprise St Helena team. The Enterprise St Helena team has limited advisory experience, particularly in areas that are Sector Development specific. Therefore, the Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will be expected to pass on technical skills to the internal team wherever possible.

Deliverables

Within three months of taking up post, the Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will be expected to produce a report detailing options for the sustainable development and management of the commercial fishery, outlining the existing capacity constraints, along with options for increasing capacity. Aligned with this situational report, the Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will produce a sector development strategy, and an associated action plan which has been agreed with SHG and local industry stakeholders for implementation.

This agreed action plan must include clearly defined deliverables to be achieved along with performance targets against which these deliverables will be measured, in order that the Commercial Fisheries Development action plan may be fed into the ESH three year Corporate Plan, in line with the SEDP.

The Commercial Fisheries Development Manager will alsobe expected to produce monthly overview reports of activities undertaken against these deliverables, for submission to the ESH Board via the Director of Enterprise, along with other short reports or comments on business proposals as required.

Reporting and Confidentiality

In all of its workings, the Business Development Team needs to establish effective communication and liaise closely with local business community representatives, such as the Fisherman’s Association, holding regular engagement meetings to ensure close collaboration.While the emphasis will be on open and transparent communications, the Commercial Fisheries Development Manager must respect the confidentiality of the work undertaken where necessary.

Qualifications, Experience and Skills Required:

The role will appeal to an individual with wide commercial fishing industry experience at a senior management level.

Essential:

  • Commercial experience of fisheries investigation, development and management in tropical developing countries or small island states.
  • Commercial experience that includes some of the following; managing fishing vessels; processing catch; international sales and marketing of fish; running a commercial fishing venture; Tuna fishing and associated markets.
  • Excellent financial appraisal, modelling and forecasting skills
  • Understanding the challenges and mind-set of SME businesses
  • A pragmatic approach to improving business performance
  • Enjoy a wide variety of work
  • Able to communicate and relate to a wide range of contacts
  • Flexible, adaptable and results focused
  • Happy working in a small team, requiring a hands-on approach

Desirable:

  • An understanding of the respective roles and responsibilities of UK Government Departments and agencies with respect to fisheries sector matters in the Overseas Territories and be aware of the appropriate points of contact
  • Working in a small community
  • High-value, low-volume tourism
  • Existing familiarity with St Helena