Aquaculture continues to significantly expand its production, making it the fastest-growing food production sector globally. However, the sustainability of the sector is at stake due to the predicted effects of climate change that are not only a future but also a present reality. In this paper, we review the potential effects of climate change on aquaculture production and its implications on the sector's sustainability. Various elements of a changing climate, such as rising temperatures, sea-level rise, diseases and harmful algal blooms, changes in rainfall patterns, the uncertainty of external inputs supplies, changes in sea surface salinity, and severe climatic events have been discussed. Furthermore, several adaptation options have been presented as well as some gaps in existing knowledge that require further investigations. Overall, climate change effects and implications on aquaculture production sustainability are expected to be both negative and positive although, the negative effects outweigh the positive ones. Adapting to the predicted changes in the short-term while taking mitigation measures in the long-term could be the only way toward sustaining the sector's production. However, successful adaptation will depend on the adaptive capacity of the producers in different regions of the world.
Despite Zambia's recent policies for optimizing sustainable management of fisheries, their success has been modest in practice. Artisanal and industrial fleets have led to decline in fish catches in the presence of currently prescribed management possibilities. Among other factors, excessive fishing and unsustainable fishing methods attributed to common property and free access to the resources are key. The country adopted co-management approach to fisheries management in the 1990s with a view to improve the fisheries stocks through community enforcement of fishery management regulations. Neither the success of co-management has been easy to measure nor its results appreciated. In view of overfishing, it is required to continue providing a range of empirical evidence of area-specific co-management interventions as basis for designing realistic and innovative solutions for the nation. This implies that new policies and institutions need to be developed by research to understand fisheries systems and better promote sustainable trajectories. The following review recommendation to central government is a coherent approach that uses and crystallizes the multiple interests and skills of co-management stakeholders. Most stakeholder groups have been involved in an ad hoc fashion through workshops, public meetings and consultative processes mainly organized by Department of Fisheries. Stakeholders should be involved from the design of the process to each step in the process, including the ongoing monitoring and evaluation. A form of memorandum of understanding is suggested. This will formally set out a process that acknowledges each stakeholder's interests and provide forums to facilitate discussion, consultation and monitoring of management activities.
Fisheries management has evolved in Malawi from a traditional system to a centralized regime and lately to co-management fisheries systems, although, success stories about sustainability of the fishery resources are few. Open access nature of fisheries resources has posed a challenge to management regimes. Resource over exploitation has continued in a majority of fisheries worsened by large stretches of the shoreline manned by a single fisheries field staff, and limited capacity by DoF to monitor and manage the fishery. However, isolated localities have upheld management styles that have facilitated sustainable exploitation. Mbenji Island fishery ‘managers’ have ensured high compliance to fisheries rules and regulations among fishers through strict enforcement and maintained abundant fish stocks amid visibly declining levels of fish in vast localities of Lake Malawi and other water bodies in Malawi. There is,therefore, need to take the Mbenji Island success story to other fishing communities to learn from their fisheries management strategies. Information Communication Technology (ICT) as a powerful means in mobilizing communities to take charge of their own development should support ‘best practices’ and offer fishing communities access to the same type of services and advantages. If appropriately applied,ICT can provide for real-time monitoring of fisheries resources as fishers alarm law enforcers to move in at appropriate times. Fishers also strike deals on mobile phones for the day's catch even before landing at shore. This reduces post-harvest waste from delayed handling of fish. Computers have been used for data management, storage and analysis as well as accessing internet services. Studies have shown commonalities in fisher communities in terms of socio-economic and cultural characteristics. On the basis of such an advantage, more could be shared among such communities. Management success can be adopted by other communities of fishers through use of ICT such as radio programs (supplemented by phone-in sessions) undertaken by local-level resource users. These programs provide locally available information and knowledge on best practices aimed at sustainability with means within communities. This encourages community members in other localities to come together to seek the way forward on the basis of lessons from successful communities aired on local radio stations (both community or national radio stations). It is easier to adopt practices that have worked in near vicinities. After all,what is currently called co-management is seemingly based on indigenous knowledge of fishers and other resource users. Mbenji Island is one of the custodians of ICT option in small-scale fisheries management of Lake Malawi. Information Communication Technology provides opportunity for both the Malawi Department of Fisheries (DoF) and fishers with information about fisher community activities including catch and market regardless of distance.
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