Show me the way: Inclination towards governance attributes in the artisanal fisheries of Sierra Leone

Interactive Governance for Small-Scale Fisheries

“…These changes started with the reform of the 1963 Fisheries Act, an enactment of the 1988 Fisheries Management and Development Act, the 1994 Fisheries Decree, the 2003 National Fisheries Policy reforms, and recently the 2011 Fisheries and Aquaculture Bill under ratifi cation (Thorpe et al 2009 ;Sheriff et al 2009 ;Baio 2010 ;EIF 2013 ). In addition, the Sierra Leone Fisheries Five Year Plan and Fisheries Assessment Framework provides long term vision and governance considerations in meeting the expectations of stakeholders (Baio and Neiland 2014 ).…”

“…These changes were mostly spurred by a growing need to integrate fi sheries into broader development planning and trade policies, to garner public participation and secure the rights and benefi ts of locals especially with the 2004 Local Government Act (Sheriff et al 2009 ;EIF 2013 ). This transitional governance also signifi es a higher level of awareness for stronger institutions that are legitimate and resonate with public interests (Baio 2010 ).…”

“…Recent accounts about the co-governance arrangements indicate that the process was rushed, focusing mainly on rent extraction by Local Councils in the absence of institutional structures for managerial responsibilities and program implementation (Baio 2010 ;EJF 2011 ). If well developed and nurtured, governing reforms could trigger transformative changes and spill-over effects to other food production sectors especially agricultural and in rural planning and regional economic development.…”

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“…Pelagic fish (sardines, sardinellas, mackerels, bonga shad) as well as demersal species (croakers, African threadfin, soles, catfish, and snappers) are important components of the artisanal catch. While most countries engage in both industrial and artisanal fishing with varying gear types and target species for each sector, it appears that Senegal, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Nigeria have predominately artisanal fleets (CORMIER-SALEM, 1994;LAE et al, 2004;SYLVANUS, 2007;BRINSON, 2009;BAIO, 2010). The gear types in use include a variety of nets (seines, driftnets, hand trawls, and set gill nets), as well as traps, hand lines, pole lines, and some longlines (ICCAT 2005, Sea Around Us Project 2010); there is also a higher incidence of mixed gear use among artisanal fisheries compared to industrial fleets (MOORE et al, 2010).…”

“…FAO data indicate that artisanal purse seine fishing in Liberia captures mainly sardinella (60% of total catch in 1986). Fishermen in Sierra Leone use mostly nets (65.4% of total gear) to capture bonga, sardine, and barracuda (Sphyraena) (BAIO, 2010). In Ghana, an artisanal drift net fishery targets sailfish and other billfish, tunas, and sharks (BRINSON et al, 2009).…”