World News: Support small-scale and artisanal fisheries to play their key role in supporting food security and poverty eradication

Small-scale fisheries hold enormous potential to promote transformative changes in how, by whom, and for whom fish and fishery products are produced, processed and distributed – with positive benefits throughout global aquatic food systems. Hence, they have a key role to play in FAO’s Blue Transformation Programme Priority Area (PPA).

FAO has continued to support small-scale fisheries within the framework of the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines). Many related initiatives by governments, small-scale fisheries organizations and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), development organizations, research institutes, etc also take place.

The sum of these efforts contributes to the uptake of the SSF Guidelines in policies and strategies and to their implementation, creating the enabling framework for sustained positive impact for small-scale fishing communities and those they support.

• Small-scale fisheries account for at least 40 percent of global fisheries catch (68 percent from marine fisheries; 32 percent from inland fisheries).
• 90 percent of the people employed along capture fisheries value chains operate in small-scale fisheries. This includes 14.6 million in harvesting in inland fisheries, and 12.9 million in marine fisheries harvesting.
• 45 million women participate in small-scale fisheries, including for subsistence.
• 492 million people depend at least partially on small-scale fisheries for their livelihoods.
• Small fish and midwater fish from inland and marine fisheries are especially nutritious and found abundantly in small-scale fisheries landings and
• Co-management is likely implemented about 20 percent of the catch from small-scale fisheries

Committee on Fisheries, Thirty-fifth Session, 5-9 September 2022, Rome, Italy documents are available at:
https://www.fao.org/about/meetings/cofi/documents-cofi35/en/