National Diagnostic of the Functionality of Fisherfolk Organisations in Trinidad and Tobago

From May 2019 to March 2020, the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI), provided technical assistance for the project, “National Diagnostic of the Functionality of Fisherfolk Organisations in Trinidad and Tobago”.

This project was carried out in support of the Project on the Sustainable Management of Bycatch in Latin America and Caribbean Bottom Trawl Fisheries (REBYC-II LAC)  and implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Reduction.

The project was facilitated by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in partnership with the Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment Marine Laboratory and the University of the West Indies Centre of Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES).

CANARI, as the in-country project lead, worked closely with other local partners such as the Fisheries Division of Trinidad and Tobago, the Trinidad and Tobago United Fisherfolk organisation (TTUF) and Future Fishers for the implementation of the Trinidad and Tobago component of this project. See project brief here.

 

Goal

The overall goal of the project was to understand the self-governance capacity of small-scale fishing organisations by characterising and evaluating existing institutional arrangements of the small-scale fisheries sector and identifying areas for support and strengthening capacity.

 

Key results

  • Diagnostic tool for fisherfolk organisations self-organisation and functionally was developed to fit the Trinbagonian context
  • 57 surveys were conducted with 19 active fisherfolk organisations as well as five inactive organisations and the Trinidad and Tobago United Fisherfolk. This facilitated rich discussions on areas for capacity development for fisherfolk organisations and the fishing industry in Trinidad and Tobago,
  • Validation workshop was held, involving lead researchers, key stakeholders and fisherfolk to present and discuss preliminary findings.
  • Communications product with lessons from the field was developed which will be shared with fisherfolk organisations and other stakeholders.
  • Input will be given on the technical report and the final findings shared with stakeholders.

 

Publications

  • Slide pack developed by CANARI in collaboration with Future Fishers with field findings and lessons learnt during discussions with fisherfolk. This communication product will be revised after the technical report is finalised.
  • National Diagnostic of the Functionality of Fisherfolk Organisations in Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname Final Report. Coming soon.

 

For more information, contact Neema Ramlogan, Technical Officer at [email protected]