PRESS RELEASE

Promoting Commercial Aquaculture in Eastern Africa

ACP FISH II PROGRAMME NETWORK MEETING FOR EASTERN AFRICA

Jupiter International Hotel (Cazanchise), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
13 December 2011

A Network Meeting Press Briefing and Reception, promoting ACP Fish II activities in the Eastern Africa region, is planned on 13th December 2011 from 3:45 to 7:00p.m., and will involve participants from countries and key stakeholders in the fishing industry sector in the region.

The Meeting will offer participants the opportunity not only to learn more about how the ACP Fish II EC-funded Programme is contributing to improving fisheries management and benefitting the fishing industry as a whole, but also to share experiences with key stakeholders from other countries within the region.

The Programme, in collaboration with the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture, will hold this event during the afternoon of its 2nd Programme Monitoring and Training Workshop for Eastern Africa (from 13th to 16thDecember 2011).

By attending this important event, stakeholders will have the opportunity to meet with representatives from ten countries of the region, namely Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda in addition to representatives from the most important Regional Fisheries Bodies (RFBs) and Regional Economic Communities (RECs), namely Lake Victoria Fisheries Organisation (LVFO), Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC), Southwest Indian Ocean Commission (SWIOFC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and East African Community (EAC), as well as representatives from the fisheries communities and fish industry (fish farmers, processors, traders and exporters), the research and a partner fisheries programme (Implementation of a Regional Fisheries Strategy for the Eastern-Southern Africa and Indian Ocean, IRFS) throughout the Eastern Africa Region.

Senior diplomatic representatives from the European Union and other donor and international development agencies, including the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), as well as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in the sector have also been invited to attend.

Theme and Keynote speakers:

The theme of the Meeting is “Promoting Commercial Aquaculture in Eastern Africa”.

Opening Remarks and Welcome address

  • Chairperson: Deputy Director of Agricultural Extension (MoA), Ministry of Agriculture, Dr.Edmealem Shitaye.
  • ACP Fish II Programme Regional Manager for Eastern Africa, Mr. Koane Mindjimba.
  • ACP Fish II Programme Fisheries Policy Expert, Mr. John Purvis.
  • Senior Fisheries Officer (MoA)/ACP Fish II Focal Point for Ethiopia, Mr. Hussein Issa Abegaz (Moderator).

Keynote speakers:

1. Dr. Harrison Charo-Karisa, Director of the National Aquaculture Research Development Centre, Sagana, Kenya (for the first keynote paper on “Aquaculture as a Viable Alternative Source of Fish Supplies in Eastern Africa”)

2. Dr. Adamneh Dagne, Director of the National Fish & Other Aquatic Living Resources Research Centre, Sebeta, Ethiopia (for the second keynote paper on “Promoting Commercial Aquaculture in Ethiopia: Key Issues, Challenges and Prospects”)

The role of the ACP Fish II Programme in Eastern Africa

This Meeting is part of the driving force behind an agenda for change that will improve fisheries management in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.

The global programme budget is €30 million allocated to activities/projects in 78 ACP countries. More than 3 million Euros have been allocated to implement 33 national and regional fisheries projects in the Eastern Africa Region. Eight of these projects target Ethiopia either singly or alongside other countries in the region, namely:

  1. Training for Fisheries Management Planning.
  2. Regional training on co-management (targeting not only Ethiopia, but also Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda).
  3. Provision of technical assistance to review and improve the Catch Effort Data Collection and Recording System (CEDCRS) in Ethiopia and deliver basic training in stock assessment methodologies and requirements.
  4. Assessment of research facilities and capacities for inland fisheries management in Eastern Africa.
  5. Support to the small business sector in Ethiopia and South Sudan.

Background information

The Programme continues to follow a participatory approach through which ACP countries are involved in identifying, formulating, implementing, monitoring and evaluating projects.

To date the Programme has organized three series of Workshops to operationalize the effective participation of stakeholders in planning and implementing the projects approved for the regions and to follow up the

assignments by consultants. Field implementation of these projects began late 2010 with the holding of a Regional Needs Assessment Workshop for Eastern Africa in December2010. A Regional Planning Workshop

for the region followed in October2010, while the 1stProgramme Monitoring Workshop was held in March2011 with the objective to monitor implementation of projects thus far.

Fisheries are one of the economic sectors that have received continuous support from the European Commission (EC) through the European Development Fund (EDF), both at regional and national levels.

ACP Fish II is a demand driven programme financed by the EC under the 9th EDF, aiming at strengthening fisheries management in ACP countries. The overall objective of the Programme is to contribute to the sustainable and equitable management of fisheries, thus leading to poverty alleviation and improving food security in ACP states.

To achieve these objectives the Programme supports five main areas, namely:

  1. Improved fisheries policy and management plans at regional and national levels;
  2. Reinforced control and enforcement capabilities;
  3. Reinforced national and regional research strategies and initiatives;
  4. Developed business supportive regulatory framework and private sector investment;
  5. Increased knowledge-sharing on fisheries management and trade at regional level.

The cornerstone of the Programme is devising sound fisheries policies and management plans critical to ensuring the sustainable use of fishery resources and the development of value-added activities in the sector.

Fisheries in the Eastern Africa region

Fisheries in Eastern Africa provide a microcosm of the continental fisheries sector. Characteristics range from the established, export orientated Nile perch fishery on shared Lake Victoria, through tuna fishery across the Indian Ocean, to fish production in small-scale fish ponds in Sudan to the relatively young fish export industries of the Red Sea coast.

The common theme to all these fisheries is their importance to the economic development of the region and their potential to provide critical food security for increasing populations. Fisheries management in these countries is also an area that has traditionally been deprived of significant financial support.

Almost 90% of the fish produced in the Eastern Africa region originates from freshwater sources with only the remaining 10% from the vast marine areas controlled by the region. It is therefore not surprising to learn that most of the inland fisheries now show signs of being overfished whereas offshore, resources still have room for expansion under sustainable management regimes.

For further information please contact:

-Mr. Koane Mindjimba - Regional Manager, Tel: (256) 414251640; e-mail:

-Mr. Martin Fitzgerald, Euro Keys, Tel: + 32 496 114330; e-mail:

-