The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) has announced plans further to impact the Liberian Fisheries sector through the European Union-funded Communities for Fisheries Project.
Mr. Cephas Asare, the West Africa Regional Manager of EJF, revealed recently during the project’s Steering Committee meeting, that in the fifth year of the European Union-funded Communities for Fisheries project, they intend to map fishers' landing smoking spaces and Territorial Use Rights for Fishing (TURF) for Collaborative Management Associations (CMA).
Mr. Asare explained that the TURF is an area-based fishing right that allocates secure, exclusive privileges to fish in a specified area to groups, or in rare cases, individuals. The various CMAs would support the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA) to manage these areas to ensure sustainable fisheries. He added that EJF will provide investigative reporting training for 20 journalists in Liberia.
This training aims to empower Liberian journalists to bring attention to fisheries by highlighting its crucial contribution to food security and supporting NaFAA in the fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
Additionally, the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), plans to collaborate with NaFAA to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the CMAs. Furthermore, as part of the 2024 plan, three office structures will be built for Sass Town, Grand Cape Mount County Region one and two CMAs, and the formation of male-dominated VLSA will be piloted in Grand Kru County as well.
The European Union has expressed its support for the Liberia Fisheries sector, particularly focusing on the marine sector. Ms. Maria Winnubst, a member of the European Union Delegation to Liberia overseeing the Communities for Fisheries project, mentioned that their ongoing interventions in the Liberian Fisheries sector are ending.
However, the EU plans to initiate a new program for fisheries. In the meantime, they will provide technical assistance to NaFAA in the areas of governance in marine fisheries (to support the CMA), the Aquaculture sector, visibility for fisheries through journalist training, and combatting IUU.
