Seeking a harmonious coexistence between Pacific Islanders and the life below water

Marine resources are the backbone of Pacific Island economies and are fundamental for the livelihood of their inhabitants. However, the region is at the forefront of climate change and is struggling to control illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing practices. The EU is working with regional agencies, local authorities and NGOs for their economic, social and environmental benefit.

Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing has a serious impact on the living conditions of Pacific Islanders. Data from 2016¹ estimates the cost of this practice at more than $600 million, the equivalent of €495 million a year.

In 2018, the European Union (EU) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) launched The Pacific-European Union Marine Partnership (PEUMP) – implemented in 15 Pacific countries² ­– to provide holistic support to the ocean and coastal governance, focusing on biodiversity protection and sustainable fisheries and other marine resources by implementing key result areas (KRA)³.

Lessons learnt from the PEUMP Programme:

1. Exchanging knowledge despite the technical coordination challenges
2. Adapting to climate change impact for coastal ecosystems and social context
3. Providing accredited and inclusive education for all in the Pacific Islands
4. Ensuring gender and social inclusion in the fisheries sector

1. Exchanging knowledge despite the technical coordination challenges

PEUMP is a complex programme due to the extended network of implementing partners and its geographical scope⁴. One of the main elements to ensure the success of this programme is to exchange information. This is done byusing a wider pool of technical expertise from across four regional partners to address challenges and learn from each other’s experience. Leigh-Anne Buliruarua, Project Team Leader of KRA 6 of the PEUMP Programme at the University of the South Pacific (USP), explains, “to learn about the technical capacities of each of the stakeholders involved in the implementation of this programme is beneficial to the whole programme.”

Jamie Davies, Project Manager of KRA 5 of the PEUMP Programme at the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), explains the compromise and flexibility needed to implement realistic activities for limited initiatives such as PEUMP. “It is important to invest time to understand the professional and personal challenges that colleagues in partner organisations face to build trust and facilitate the identification of solutions.”

Leigh-Anne Buliruarua highlights two challenges related to this coordination. “At times, we have had problems communicating promptly with our partners on the ground, usually with communications infrastructure and language barrier as challenges.” To solve these problems, partners reinforce their communication regularly, and USP maximises its regional presence through its campuses in 11 of the 15 Pacific-ACP countries. In countries where the USP does not have a campus, like Timor Leste, the solution often involves the participation of EU Delegations and the National Authorising Offices.

2. Adapting to climate change impact for coastal ecosystems and social context

Climate change is already causing a rise in sea level, ocean acidification, shifting rainfall patterns, and increased intensity of storm events in the Pacific. There is scientific evidence on the potential risks of these events on coral reef, seagrass and mangrove ecosystems, and watershed⁵ runoff. Maintaining healthy coastal ecosystems is critical to Pacific coastal communities and economies.

PEUMP is working with communities, government and civil society groups in four areas in Vanuatu to address these issues and to promote the sustainable use and restoration of coastal ecosystems. These ecosystem services include shoreline protection, maintenance of water quality, support for reef and nearshore tourism activities, and resilience to the impact of climate change.

Throughout this process, recognising traditional land ownership rights and identifying the role of multiple stakeholders in the focal area has been vital to ensure that the initiative was widely understood and supported.

“We took the time to discuss with ministries the challenges faced by their teams implementing their priorities,” Jamie Davies explains. “To find the right solutions, we decided to hire a highly respected ni-Vanuatuan as country coordinator. The local support of this person helped us build local ownership of the work, build trust, and increase collaboration between partners.”

This partnership was even reinforced by establishing the multi-partner Steering Committee, involving essential players in the discussions and sharing expertise to support coastal communities.

3. Providing accredited and inclusive education for all in the Pacific Islands

Sustainable management of fisheries resources and ecosystems is one of the key areas of the PEUMP programme. The USP provides specific training and capacity-building activities for fisheries stakeholders.

Leigh-Anne Buliruarua explains, “our academic, technical and professional development programmes promote inclusivity of all stakeholders and are an accredited training.”

Among the training options available, USP offers eight scholarships ­­– including four masters and four PhDs – to build the pool of marine researchers in the region.

Small-scale seafood business is fundamental to the community and livelihoods of Pacific Islanders. In support of this, new programmes developed included the first two regional fisheries micro-qualifications, addressing seafood business operations and seafood safety and quality at community level.

Leigh-Anne Buliruarua added, “These targeted community-based training courses touch the very heart of our grassroots communities. They not only promote the economic empowerment of these communities, but also promote the sustainable management and use of their marine resources.  COVID-19 has reinforced the need for such community-based training.”

Ioanna Nabura, Director of the Catholic Women’s League, is a community leader in Kiribati and explains in practical terms how the community benefit from micro-training. “Our fishers were told how to use ice cubes to preserve the quality of the fish and keep it fresh for longer.” She adds, “women are traditionally the ones selling fish in the market. They were told how to ensure hygiene in informal marketplaces without access to water, such as smoking the fish, keeping fresh fish in boxes and cleaning the tables where the food is exposed.”

All efforts are needed to improve the diet and health of Pacific islanders, which has already suffered due to the impact of climate change. Ioanna Nabura adds, “people are consuming more imported food from the shops. Buying rice, flour, and other ingredients is not affordable for all. Inhabitants’ diets have worsened and, consequently, so has their health with diseases such as obesity and hepatitis.”

Understanding the different needs, levels of use, and access to natural resources and marine spaces for every individual and social group, is essential to this mentality shift. Nutrition and sustainable fishing workshops are available to the community. The USP is piloting a short training session on traditional canoe building and sailing for the Fijian island community to reinforce traditional skills and promote sustainable transport.

Leigh-Anne Buliruarua considers the decrease in tourism due to COVID-19 and the consequent loss of jobs an opportunity to change mindsets. “It is a perfect moment to create the conditions for more sustainable solutions to earn money and eat healthily from our marine resources. By reinforcing our ancestors’ traditional skills, we will protect the oceans and create better opportunities for all.”

4. Ensuring gender and social inclusion in the fisheries sector

PEUMP applies a gender social inclusion (GSI) lens, and a human rights (HR) approach across all activities. The programme promotes women in marine science and research, empowering them to participate in decision-making and boost their capacities for equal and decent employment opportunities.

The Pacific Community (SPC) provided training to mainstream GSI in the fisheries sector. Martin Chong, Programme Coordinator of the Programme Management Unit at PEUMP, explains, “transforming social norms through GSI and HR-based approaches is a long process. To do so, we incorporated lessons learned from past work, which contributed to the success of efforts to include GSI and  HR in Pacific fisheries.”

SPC is also developing tailored materials and practical tools like the Pacific Handbook for gender equity and social inclusion in coastal fisheries and aquaculture⁶. SPC contributes to strengthening GSI and HR to bridge the gap of gender inclusion in the fisheries sector by reinforcing the importance of the human dimension of fisheries, including equitable sharing of benefits and inclusive decision-making.

PEUMP plays a crucial role in reinforcing scientific research, respecting the current regulations, and ensuring sustainable management of fishing areas and types of marine resources available for human consumption. Putting people first, with the empowerment of the community to return to traditional practice, is crucial for both the ocean and the livelihoods of all Pacific Islanders.

Click on the play button below to watch our video about Pacific-European Union Marine Partnership (PEUMP). 

Have you been involved in relevant interventions for the protection of oceans and the life below water?

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Credit: Video © Capacity4dev | Photo © Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP)

1 There is still no official data reporting on the impact of COVID-19 on IUU fishing and the impact on these communities. 

2 PEUMP is implemented in Fiji, Kiribati, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, Samoa, Timor – Leste, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, the Marshall Islands, Tonga, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

3 For more information about the KRAs, check the box "More about the PEUMP programme in the Pacific Islands".

4 For more information, check the box "More about the PEUMP programme in the Pacific Islands".

5 A watershed refers to an area of land that drains to a common water body such as a lake or a stream.

6 First published in 2019, the handbook was well received by partners and national fisheries agencies as the first Pacific-specific guide on Gender Social Inclusion (GSI) to provide simple tools for use in a fisheries context. It is being widely used to support training and guide various GSI/Human Rights-based activities. Three additional modules were added to the handbook in 2020 on field-related fisheries topics: community engagement, livelihoods and coastal management approaches.  This work was informed by a wide range of stakeholders including Fisheries, Aquaculture & Marine Ecosystems (FAME), Human Rights and Social Development (HRSD) and Land Resources Division (LRD) staff within SPC.