Fisheries stakeholders validate action plan to secure the sector

Several stakeholders in the fisheries sector gathered at the Grand Resort in Belize City this morning to work on the validation of an action plan.  Participants spent the day revising proposed action that would assess feasibility, identify dependencies, and establish a prioritized implementation roadmap for a more secure sector.  The opening of the workshop took place at eight o’clock this morning and had the participation of senior officials from the Blue Bond Unit, the Office of the Prime minister and the ministry of the blue economy.  Chief Executive Officer for Blue Economy and Marine Conservation, Beverly Wade, explained to Love News that aside from the development of the plan, the execution is even more important.

Beverly Wade, CEO, Blue Economy and Marine Conservation: “Today is a validation workshop for fisheries enforcement and conservation monitoring strategy and action plan. It’s basically a framework that we are working on to promote better coordination in enforcement, to have a more structured approach to how we carry out enforcement in our blue space so that we can realize greater effectiveness and at the end of the day, have a blue space that is functional, it is able to provide the ecosystem services that we depend on whether it is for nature, whether it is for people, livelihoods, and economy. From the beginning of this process it has always been an inclusive approach. And we have the governance institution, the regulatory agencies that are on the ground that are actually carrying out the actual enforcement currently. We have our sister agencies that are working in this space. So we’ve been coordinating with customs, with BAHA, with the DOE. We also have with us, very importantly, the users of the resource because enforcement is also not just about the people who are policing the area but also the core responsibility and understanding that enforcement also plays a role with the users of the resource and we have our non-governmental partners who have been working with us side by side in ensuring its long-term sustainability within this space.”

We also spoke to Rigoberto Quintana, Administrator at the Belize Fisheries Department. He gave us a brief explanation of the plan, the players and the way forward. We also asked about the plans to tackle the transboundary and illegal fishing that is constantly happening in maritime areas. 

Rigoberto Quintana, Administrator, Belize Fisheries Department: “So today we are carrying out the validations for the National Fisheries Enforcement Conservation Monitoring Strategy and Action Plan. This work has been led by several processes in engagement with key stakeholders and today we have the draft product that is being validated by the relevant stakeholders. In the meeting we have the Fisheries Department, the Belize Coast Guard, the Police Department, the customs, we have environment, and other key partners that have been supporting fisheries enforcement, our co-managers. We have always brought to the table the fishers as the key stakeholders. Last year we had our first workshop last year where we have always engaged the fishermen, the associations and also at the highest level in the Fisheries Council we have four Fisher representatives that at the end of the day when this strategy is finalized it will also be presented to to the members of the Fisheries Council for endorsement.”

Reporter: In regards to trans-boundary and illegal fishing happening in our country, does this plan and collaboration with our neighbors to address this issue?

Rigoberto Quintana, Administrator, Belize Fisheries Department: “Yes, that is one of the priority areas to look at the trans-boundary illegal fishing, to look at more regional coordination. For example since Belize now starting December 4th we have the regional director from Belize at the Organization of Fisheries and Aquaculture in Central America. So we hope that we will strengthen those collaborations with our neighboring countries, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras to see how we can have more coordinated and a effective response mechanism when it comes to addressing IUU (Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated) fishing in the area. So in July we also developed the National Plan of Action for IUU (Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated) fishing and that is also being integrated in this enforcement strategy to look at all these transboundary risks and transboundary IUU (Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated) fishing.”

One important element in enforcement is the Belize Coast Guard.  On hand, this morning was Rear Admiral Elton Bennett, who spoke on the Coast Guard’s involvement, its contribution and the necessary resources needed for such an undertaking. 

Rear Admiral Elton Bennett, Commandant, Belize Coast Guard: “Well this is a very important enforcement strategy that has national implications because it deals with managing your natural resources across the country. So focusing on freshers enforcement itself grabs the attention of the Belize Coast Guard. As a matter of fact, our national security strategy in pillar three speaks to the country’s responsibility in securing different areas of our economy and for us supporting the blue economy is very important. So it speaks to national security, it speaks to securing food, managing livelihoods in the blue spaces. So for the Belize Coast Guard all of these grab our attention. So we partner along with the different entities that are taking this lead. For example, the Belize Fisheries Department we are working closely along with them to ensure that the Coast Guard’s contribution is practical and that we are considered in the overall scheme of the enforcement strategy so that when this strategy is passed there’s allocation of resources for actual enforcement for our operations. So the Coast Guard is very interested in what is happening and I think this is the platform to do that to ensure that our collective voices are heard across the room of policy makers that we would like to have more resources in order to better perform our duties. So that’s exactly where we’re heading with this strategy.”

The eight-hour event was a collaboration of several agencies, namely, the Blue Bond and Finance Permanence Unit, Government of Belize, Belize Fisheries Department, Belize Coast Guard and Belize Blue Fund for a Sustainable Future.  The plan is dubbed the ‘National Fisheries Enforcement and Conservation Monitoring Strategy and Action Plan.’