As part of the consultation process for the development of the International Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF Guidelines), a series of workshops are being held for the Caribbean countries in Jamaica this week.
During the series of workshops being held from 5 to 12 December 2012, delegates are being asked to review and provide comments on the Zero Draft of the SSF Guidelines.
Milton Haughton, executive director, Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), said: "It is an opportunity for the countries and stakeholders, meaning government representatives as well as fisher folk and other stakeholders – including non-government organisations and civil society organisations – to get together to discuss issues of common interest and to come up with plans and programmes for a brighter future."
The meetings are convened by the CRFM in collaboration with the FAO Western Central Atlantic Fishery Commission (WECAFC), the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), through funding and technical assistance provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
CRFM says that the review will pave the way for the CRFM Member States and collaborators to formulate a new eight-year strategic plan fo towards sustainable development of fisheries for the people of the Caribbean.
Meanwhile, a negotiated final draft of the SSF Guidelines is not due to be presented for adoption until the next session of the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) in July 2014.
