1. Responsible Fisheries Business Chains on Lake Victoria Project
The project ‘Responsible Fisheries Business Chains on Lake Victoria (RFBC) is supported under the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) Global Programme ‘One World-No Hunger’. The project is formulated to implement some key interventions identified in the NPFMP (2015-2019) and the Lake Victoria Fisheries Management Plan III. The guiding framework is intending to adopt new approaches to fisheries management that are based on economics, wealth creation, value chains, business enterprises and a proactive private sector, adoption of a business approach linked to resource management and a move from open to controlled fisheries access using licensing as management tools only in Uganda. Under resource monitoring, GIZ is supporting the reviews of Standard Operating Procedures, development of Electronic Catch Assessment System pilot the system, Conduct of hydroacoustic surveys (2018,2019 and 2020). The project is implemented in Public Private Partnership arrangement involving LVFO Institutions, the Private Sector – The Fish Processors Associations in the three Partner States (AFIPEK; TIFPA & UFFPEA); and BMU Networks. The estimated budget is EURO 8 Million; with about EURO 1.794 Million allocated to LVFO Institutions and about EURO 1.2 Million to the Associations while about EURO 5 Million is for the support and administrative costs through the GIZ.
2. EU-EAC PROJECT FOR PROMOTING AQUACULTURE IN THE LAKE VICTORIA BASIN (TRUE-FISH)
The LVFO is working with the EAC Secretariat and EU Delegation Regional Office to formulate a project to support the promotion of Aquaculture in the EAC. The main objective is to contribute to the development of competitive, gender equitable and sustainable commercial aquaculture in order to support economic development and sustainable management of natural resources in the Lake Victoria basin. The overall budget is EUR10.15 million. Three result areas are proposed: Result 1: Improved access to finance and to commercial networks for competitive aquaculture-related businesses; Result 2: Increased availability and quality of local skilled workers in aquaculture-related businesses; Result 3: Sustainable and bio-secure regional aquaculture production systems. Click here for more information about the project
3. EU EDF-11 Cross Regional Envelope – ‘ECOFISH Programme’
The Lake Victoria Fisheries Organisation (LVFO) received a grant from the European Union (EU) of Euros 2 million to implement the ‘Contribution of Sustainable Fisheries to the Blue Economy of the Eastern Africa, Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean Region – E€OFISH programme’. The overall objective is to enhance equitable economic growth by promoting sustainable fisheries in the East African-South African-Indian Ocean (EA-SA-IO) region. The specific objective is to support sustainable management and development of fisheries, while addressing climate change resilience and enhancing marine biodiversity.
On Lake Victoria, the purpose of the Programme is to support sustainable management and development of fisheries resources. The ECOFISH programme came into force in September 2018 when the agreement was signed between the European Union and the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC). The following the activities being supported for the next four (4) years:
- Recruitment of Programme Staff-Administrative and Accounts Assistant.
- A Project Administrative Assistant and the Project Accounts Assistant, were recruited and on are duty
- Procurement of Programme Project vehicle.
- A Programme vehicle was delivered to the Secretariat in November 2020
- To conduct the Lake Wide Frame Survey on Lake Victoria.
- A lake wide frame survey has been conducted and data entered and analysed with national reports awaited for integration into a regional report
- Reviewing the Lake Victoria Fisheries Management Plan III (2016-2020) and drafting the LVFO Management Plan IV (2021-2025).
- The consultancy is ongoing and stakeholder consultations to be undertaken including regional validation
- To undertake a Legal Institutional and Organisational Framework Analysis of the Proposed East Africa Fisheries Organisation (EAFO).
- The consultancy was advertised and the selection process is ongoing to have the legal and institutional reforms reviewed.
- Training in enforcement, compliance and prosecution procedures in enforcement, compliance and prosecution procedures.
- The recruitment process for a short-term consultancy is ongoing. The consultant will train a regional team (Training of Trainers) and national teams will be trained, equipped and facilitated to undertake enforcement operations at national level in June 2021, with the plan of implementation of Regional Monitoring, Control and Surveillance operations in the Lake Victoria
- Facilitate national high-level policy dialogue on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and sensitize fisher communities and lower-level leadership on importance of their roles in combating IUU.
- The National high-level policy dialogue on IUU fishing and sensitization of fisher communities and lower level leadership on importance of their roles in combating IUU is planned for June 2021
4. Development of LVEMP III
The LVEMP II came to an end in December 2017. The project supported the development of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy for EAC; the review of the Fisheries Management Plan III (2016-2020); Conducting of lake-wide Frame Survey 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016; Catch Assessment Survey 2014 & 2015; Hydro-acoustic Surveys of 2015. It facilitated a number of community demand driven and the establishment of Fish Levy Trust Fund in Kenya and Tanzania. The proposed activities under LVEMP III are mainly resource monitoring surveys such as hydroacoustic surveys, bottom trawl survey, Frame surveys, Catch Assessment, Gillnet and Socio-economics. These surveys are very important in the provision of information to guide the management and development of fisheries. In addition, LVEMP-III will address the issues of community based protection of breeding and nursery grounds as these areas are susceptible to land base pollutions and are very key for replenishment of fish in open waters.
5. Global Challenges Research Fund Networking Grants (GCRF)
In collaboration with the University of St. Andrews, Scotland a project titled “developing a skilled fisheries-acoustics network for Lake Victoria: capacity-building for resource management and fisheries research in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya” is being implemented from February 2018 to January 2019. The project is intended to build a nucleous of Hydro-acoustic scientists through a series of trainings that will take place within the East African region and Scotland.