A NEW FISHERIES PROJECT IN WEST AFRICA



The Sustainable Fisheries Livelihoods Programme (SFLP), financed for a period of 7 years, started its activities in November 1999.

The SFLP represents a partnership between the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland (DFID), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and 25 participating countries in West Africa. The Programme is funded by DFID and executed by the FAO.


The Programme’s interventions are informed by:

  • The existence of major threats and constraints to the sustainable use of aquatic resources by artisanal coastal and inland fisheries communities.
     

  • The possibility of improving livelihoods and reducing poverty within communities by using an appropriate approach, the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach  (SLA) in conjunction with the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (CCRF).
     

  • The observation that information is lacking among fisheries communities and decision-makers. If such information is made available to them, it would contribute to improve fisheries communities livelihoods as well as facilitate the inclusion of the fisheries communities aspiration in public policies.
     

  • The importance of supporting and strengthening at different levels (local, regional, national) the participating and consultative mechanisms that impact on both resource exploitation methods and community livelihoods diversification strategies by a holistic approach