Upscaling 15 years of 30 ha LMMA experience to encompass a 12,000 ha fisheries co-management area, in Kilifi, Kenya
The Blue Champions award is facilitated by the Blue Solutions initiative, which provides a global platform to collate, share and generate knowledge and capacity for sustainable management and equitable governance of our blue planet. The aim of the Blue Champions Award which is open to participants from all around the world is to support outstanding practitioners around the globe, who are engaged for healthy oceans. It rewards those who believe that exchanging knowledge and good practices are key to accelerating the changes needed for healthy oceans and sustainable development.
Oceans Alive Foundation was proud to be announced as a 2021 winner of the Blue Champions Award to upscale our solution of Upscaling 15 years of a 30 ha LMMA experience to encompass a 10,000 ha fisheries co-management area, in Kilifi, Kenya.
Winning the Blue Champions Award helped us to scale up our blue solution.
The upscaling of this experience came through:
o The development of the KBMU implementation matrix
o Development of the Annual work plan
o Training (BMU internal capacity) with a focus on:
▪ BMU orientation on co-management including leadership
▪ Financial management
▪ Fish management (to be done in collaboration with Fisheries)
▪ Finalise the By-laws, MOU for KBMU and KCW –CBO
▪ Enhance the internal capacity of KCW-CBO
▪ Develop and orient the BMU and KCW on the checklist
We at Oceans Alive see this approach and project as vital in light of the drafting and finalization of the Kuruwitu Co-management Plan. There is a need and a requirement to build upon the state-recognized document and put it into action. We chose this approach during the drafting of the Co-management plan with the Kuruwitu BMU, issues of institutional capacity were raised by the BMU themselves as a major issue. We recognize the issue and have seen that this is an area that Oceans Alive through the Blue Champions Project, the experience we have in the field in working with the community and 6 policy principles approach to Community Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is well-suited to help fill these gaps and to take the next steps to start to operationalize the plan and by-laws.
Blue Champions Project ran from the month July 2021 to October 2021 with the goals:
- Share solutions for upscaling from 12,000ha CMA
- Development of KCW-CBO 6 Stage Toolkit for BMUs
- Peer-to-peer training of Kuruwitu BMU on operational tools
- Development of the operational tools for by-laws
- Build upon the work of the BMU in developing the plan and support it in its transition to the operationalization stage
The Government has mandated the Kilifi County and State Fisheries to put in place CMA's throughout the county meaning that this project is in line with their goal. The various other initiatives like the Blue Economy and World Bank support of marine management support the inclusion of CMA’s throughout the Kenya coast as conservation measures to balance the advancement in fishing technologies to maintain sustainability. These aspects together with the peer-to-peer approach, which OA sees as vital, promote the exchange of this knowledge to surrounding and incoming peers for the future, even in transition periods.
