CTI-CFF/USAID SOACAP Activity 1.2: Learning Exchange (Technical Program), Bitung-Manado, Indonesia

About This Event

USAID/RDMA through US Department of Interior (DOI) for the period of 2017 – 2019 supports CTI to introduce and develop fisheries related activities that can promote sustainable fisheries practices in the CTI region, in order to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUUF), promote sustainable fisheries, and conserve marine biodiversity. This support has been acknowledged through a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat and the US DOI, on the Work Plan Entitled Strengthening Organizational and Administrative Capacity for Improved Fisheries Management (SOACAP IFM).

The SOACAP-IFM is a work plan developed which is aligned with USAID Oceans and Fisheries Partnerships (the USAID Oceans) and USAID SEAFDEC project towards strengthening regional cooperation to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUUF), promote sustainable fisheries, and conserve marine biodiversity in the Asia-Pacific region. Therefore, the CTI Regional Secretariat works closely with USAID Oceans and the USAID SEAFDEC Project to promote, develop, and when possible implement Catch Documentation and Traceability (CDT) system and CDT-integrated to Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) Plan through optimizing the use of collected CDT data on the countries’ fisheries management plan. This work plan consists number of activities, which mainly focuses on the CDT and EAFM development, establishment of scientific advisory group (SAG) as scientific panel for CDT-data collection, coalition, and analysis, and development of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) as one mechanism to finance the implementation of the proposed CDT/EAFM. The PPP mechanism is expected to address the challenges in financial constraints of the Government. The PPP concept allows improvement of quality of services, cost-risk allocation effectiveness, and faster implementation. It is of important for the CTI member countries and all stakeholders involved to hand-in-hand moving forward to improve countries fisheries performance by applying properly and strategically sustainable fisheries management including the use of innovative technology in particularly on CDT.

CDT Scheme is a fundamental concept of combating IUU fishing by providing a good documentation of tracking fish from point catch to final destination (market) including supplychain. In CDT scheme, it is of important that fishing and trading nations ensure fish and trading the open market are caught by sustainable fishing practices that mainstream conservation and management measures. Therefore, CDT scheme provide normally validated catch documents issued to fishing vessels and export or re-export documents issued or received (e.g. ASEAN Catch Documentation Scheme, ACDS). With regards to the USAID Oceans, CTI-CFF RS will learn the implementation of the Oceans self-developed CDT schemes in one of their learning sites. It will give opportunity for the CTI-CFF member countries to better understand from the practical experiences on how CDT systems can be properly developed, implemented and/or integrated into their fisheries development plan.

As per briefing results based on meetings from 29 February to 4 March 2016, it was agreed that RS will work with USAID Oceans to facilitate and organize learning exchanges for CT6 representatives on CDT FIS Plan at one of the two (2) learning sites identified under the USAID Oceans program: Bitung, Indonesia or in General Santos, the Philippines.

The USAID Oceans develop the CDT system integrated into a broader Fisheries Information Systems (FIS). This CDT System/FIS allows fisheries management to collect and analysis ecological and economic data related to seafood product throughout their supply chain, as well as enable traceability from from of catch to import and end-retail. These systems are of benefits for national fisheries managements as they can be used for the purpose of monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) as well as for stock assessment and marine spatial planning effort (in general for EAFM). More information on the USAID Oceans CDT system and FIS including who can use the system, please kindly visit https://www.seafdec-oceanspartnership.org/catchdocumentation- and-traceability/.