USAID helps fishermen to unite to protect shrimp stocks

Keeping a wary eye on dwindling sizes and numbers of shrimp, fishing communities in Senegal’s Saloum Delta Biosphere Reserve have decided to assume responsibility for their natural resources and take concrete steps to protect livelihoods now – and for future generations.

The people of Rofangué have little choice but to intervene to save what is left of fish stocks. Years ago the 500 people living on this small island in western Senegal could grow millet to add to their daily catch of fish. But ocean water flooding has rendered farming an impossible task as salt intruded into the once fertile soil. If fishing dries up in Rofangué – which means “where one lives well” in the local Serere language – its villagers will have to close their doors and move, possibly for good.

Flat and sandy brown, Rofangué would be a desolate place were it not for its lively and friendly people. There is no health post here, and malaria is a real concern. After attending the village’s only primary school, children must travel by pirogue (canoe) to nearby towns to further their education, retuning home only on weekends or even less frequently.

Twelve solar panels provide electricity, primarily for light. One day, they hope, they will be able to afford a large solar unit or generator to make ice to better preserve their fish and shrimp, much of which goes to upscale restaurants in the Senegalese capital, Dakar.

New studies financed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) clearly indicate that precautionary measures are sorely needed in Rofangué and other communities of this pristine region.

According to Matar Diouf, project manager with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), if these fishermen and those living in nearby villages fail to change fishing techniques soon, “in 10 years there will be no more shrimp fisheries in Sine Saloum.”

Diouf explained that a main problem along the coast and in the bolongs (waterways between mangrove forests) is the use of “bombardiers,” catch-all nets with tight mesh used mostly by occasional fishermen looking to turn a quick profit from shrimp. These nets pull in shrimp of all sizes, an unsustainable practice as tiny shrimp are not allowed to grow into larger, more profitable prawns. Pressure by fish buyers for a steady supply of shrimp driven by an insatiable appetite for seafood in key markets urges fishermen to work off-season.

Fishermen meeting with IUCN in the USAID-backed studies have identified other problems: inobservance of harvest closing and opening seasons, increasing number of harvesters, marketing of extremely small shrimp and inadequate numbers of trained Senegalese government officials to patrol fishing areas and stop illegal harvesting.

“Shrimp fishing is one of the most lucrative yet least organized activities,” said Abdoulaye Kane, head of IUCN’s office in Senegal. “The scientists and fishing professionals must join in a process where we all work together.”

Fisherman Fodé Sarr explained that ice and storage are much in demand, including small refrigeration units that can be taken out on boats for up to five days as they search for fish and shrimp. If there were good storage facilities in the village, he added, middlemen would come to buy the fish and increase the villagers’ profits.

Addressing the people of Rofangué after hearing their concerns, U.S. Ambassador Richard Roth said: "We count on this village because you are already aware of what must be done. Talk to fishermen from other villages; tell them why it is important to preserve the shrimp stocks. Work together to make it happen,” he challenged the group.

The same set of concerns is raised in the village of Bétanti. Keba Mané, 57, lives with his four wives and 17 children in this village on the extreme western side of the Sine Saloum with access to the ocean. A fisherman for 25 years, he says the fishermen are aware of the problem of overfishing and the need to let shrimp mature. Their nets, however, often capture the small ones, too, which the villagers eat. The large shrimp are sold to middlemen and consumed in Dakar.

Results from the USAID studies were presented recently to a meeting of the fishing group leaders (chefs de pêche) of the Sine Saloum and to a meeting with other local representatives of fishermen.

In response, the fishermen voted unanimously to close the shrimp fishing season throughout the Sine Saloum on March 31, 2005, and to open the fishery from July 15 to July 20. Under a management plan now being discussed in 33 villages and the provincial town of Foundiougne, the shrimp populations will be sampled from July 15 onwards to determine when the shrimp have grown to an adequate size. Once the appropriate size has been reached, the new harvesting season will be opened.

Fishermen are also now asking for strong enforcement by the state fisheries department) Service des Pêche of the closed season and of current mesh size regulations. According to Christopher Matthews, the expert who conducted the studies for USAID, it will take time for the people of the Sine Saloum Delta to organize and enforce its management plan, which should include village committees with walkie talkies and badges to intervene when local or transient fishermen try to harvest shrimp out of season.

“They need the right amount of gear and the right number of people,” he said, adding that with population growth, more and more people are turning to fishing to earn a living. This adds pressure on the fragile fishing industry.

The purpose of the USAID project is to develop a participatory shrimp harvest management plan based on biological and socio-economic studies.

Biological studies have provided scientific data on shrimp growth and breeding, breeding/egging sites and nutrition so that harvest season closing periods rely on scientific information.

Socio-economic studies have provided improved knowledge of the social environment of shrimp harvesters and an assessment of their harvesting methods. Matthews, working with IUCN, has assessed local harvest strategies and harvesters’ knowledge of changes in the ecosystem and resource levels, as well as their perceptions of harvest management measures.

A census conducted in the area identified over 3,700 shrimp harvesters. During the 2003-2004 season, they hauled in some 1,600 tons of shrimp. During the official, nine-month harvest season, fishermen earned nearly CFA 1 billion ($2 million).

The USAID studies are part of a broader program to encourage communities in many areas of Senegal to take the lead in managing their natural resources along the West African country’s coast as well as in its fields and forests.