Fish for All

Fish is the fastest growing source of food in developing countries. It is the primary source of animal protein for about one-sixth of the world's population -- and often the only source of protein for millions of the world's poor. Fishers in developing countries are among the poorest of the poor and fishing is often the only way out of poverty and malnutrition for them.

Meanwhile, across the world, demand for fish has doubled in the last 50 years, and production would have to double again in the next 25 years to keep up with population growth. The number of people in the world increases every year by 80-90 million, most of them in developing countries. Demand, which has risen at twice the rate of human population growth since 1961, has greatly exceeded supply and the problem is growing.

However, the world's fisheries are in crisis -- the result of unsustainable fishing practices. The problem is huge. More than 25 per cent of the world's fisheries are overexploited, 50 per cent are being fished to their full capacity and 75 per cent need immediate action to freeze or reduce fishing to ensure future supplies. World fishery production is now more than six times that of 1950.

Continued overfishing threatens global food security, impoverishes coastal communities and degrades ecosystems. It also threatens the economies of developing countries, for many of which fish are one of their few exports and foreign currency earner. Over 70 per cent of all fish exports are sourced from developing countries and this proportion is rising.

Catches of wild fish have stagnated since the mid-1980s, and many of the world's important fisheries have already collapsed. The most notorious recent example is the cod fishery in the Atlantic off Newfoundland .

In Southeast Asia, in the Philippines , for instance, what used to be some of the richest fishing grounds in the world now yield a third as many fish as they used to. (WorldFish is a leading a project that will draw up recommendations for cutting overcapacity in the region, and to do so in ways that will not raise conflicts and security issues. The problem is complex. The growing populations in the region are highly dependent on fish resources for food and livelihood, with employment opportunities in other sectors of the region's economies mostly limited. The economies of the region are facing slower growth due to the global economic slowdown. The project is funded by the Ford Foundation.)

The waters off West Africa were also once were among the richest fishing grounds in the world. But fish stocks there have crashed by 80 per cent and the area is now as depleted as the North Atlantic . As a result, many small-scale fishers, who usually use low-technology boats and gear, are suffering. They are catching less, despite staying at sea for longer and traveling further out. The fish caught are also getting smaller -- sometimes too small to be fit for human consumption.

WorldFish is coordinating the Fish for All initiative to promote sustainable fishing, improve livelihoods and foster fair trade policies. This initiative brings together policy makers, expert researchers, non-governmental organizations, fishers and business leaders. It is a valuable platform to stimulate action at both regional and national levels, and for advancing international cooperation through dialogue, debate, information sharing and consensus building to solve the global fish crisis.

Fish for All was launched in November 2002 at a global summit in Malaysia . It was attended by 300 participants from over 40 countries, and was sponsored by the US Agency for International Development. National summits were successfully held in the Philippines and India the following year.

NEPAD Fish for All (Nigeria)

An African summit is planned for early 2005. The NEPAD Fish for All Summit ( Nigeria ) will be hosted by the Nigerian government. The organizing partners include WorldFish, the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Launched in 2002, NEPAD aims to promote economic and governance improvements across the continent through African-led reforms.

The conference will look at, among other things, boosting aquaculture, using aquaculture to strengthen the competitiveness of African economies, and highlight how investments in sustainable fisheries can help African countries reduce poverty and achieve the UN Millennium Goals.

Although aquaculture has expanded steadily in Egypt and Nigeria , it is small in most of Africa at the moment. Aquaculture can be economically viable and has strong potential, but is currently hampered by lack of appropriate research and development and extension. It can play an important role in meeting growing demand, as capture fisheries decline. Most natural fisheries in the region have reached or exceeded sustainable limits.

Africans rely heavily on fish for animal protein. Fish accounts for 40 per cent of the diet of Africans. It is the only source of protein for 200 million undernourished Africans. Fishing and its associated activities provide income for 10 million Africans.

Africa is by far the world's poorest continent. Half the population of Sub-Saharan Africa live on about US$1 a day. Sub-Saharan Africa is also by far the region worst affected by HIV/Aids within the continent. Some 30 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa have HIV -- about 58 per cent are women. In several Sub-Saharan countries, at least one in five adults is HIV-positive. More than two-thirds of the people in the world who die from Aids live in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The Fish for All Global Steering Committee comprises 15 world opinion leaders, including: President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria; Professor M.S. Swaminathan, winner, World Food Prize; Dr. Raymond C. Offenheiser, President, Oxfam America; Professor Peter Doherty, winner, Nobel Prize for Medicine; and Francine Cousteau, President, The Cousteau Society.