This global initiative aimed to support the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines), endorsed only a year before the project started by the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) in 2014.
The project, funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway, was structured, as the SSF Umbrella Programme, around the following four interlinked outcomes:
Raise awareness
Develop knowledge products and outreach to promote the SSF Guidelines.
Strengthen the science-policy interface
Support policy reform through evidence-based strategies.
Empower stakeholders
Build capacities and foster institutional strengthening for small-scale fisheries governance.
Support implementation
Enable coordinated actions and monitoring for impactful results.
The initiative was designed to address the multidimensional challenges faced by small-scale fisheries, though awareness raising, capacity development, improved knowledge and raising the voice of small-scale fisheries actors. The countries involved were Cambodia, Ghana, Malawi, Sierra Leone, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda, Costa Rica and Côte d’Ivoire.
Major achievements
The project achieved significant results in its effort to raise awareness on small-scale fisheries and make sure they are included into global, regional, and national policies. Over 3,000 stakeholders across 50 countries were reached through awareness-raising campaigns and workshops, significantly exceeding targets. Knowledge products, including translations of the SSF Guidelines into multiple languages and a comprehensive gender equality handbook, were produced and disseminated.
Empowering women in small-scale fisheries
A core component of the project was the empowerment of women in the post-harvest sector in sub-Saharan Africa. Activities included mapping women’s organizations to identify their needs and establish capacity-building initiatives. Training centers and tools such as drying racks, cooler boxes, and fish-smoking kilns were introduced to improve efficiency and product quality. Learning exchanges and workshops engaged over 600 women, equipping them with skills to enhance their livelihoods while promoting gender equality in fisheries governance.
Sustainability and continuity
Sustainability was at the heart of the project’s approach. By fostering organizational capacity and aligning governance with human rights principles, the initiative laid the groundwork for change. Gender equity was deeply integrated, with a focus on improving livelihoods and reducing vulnerabilities in fishing communities. Environmental sustainability was also prioritized through capacity-building for co-management and sustainable resource utilization.
Activities were continued and expanded under new global small-scale fisheries projects which kept on advancing the implementation of SSF Guidelines, namely the “Empowering women in small-scale fisheries for sustainable food systems” and the “Creating an enabling environment for securing sustainable small-scale fisheries"
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Related publications
Illuminating Hidden Harvests -The contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development
lluminating Hidden Harvests: the contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development (hereinafter IHH) is a global study uncovering the contributions and impacts of small-scale fisheries through a multidisciplinary approach to data collection and analysis.
Securing sustainable small-scale fisheries – Showcasing applied practices in value chains, post-harvest operations and trade
The SSF Guidelines recognize the right of fishers and fishworkers, acting both individually and collectively, to improve their livelihoods through value chains, post-harvest operations and trade. To achieve this, the Guidelines recommend building capacity of individuals, strengthening organizations and empowering women; reducing post-harvest losses and adding value to small-scale fisheries production; and facilitating sustainable trade and equitable market access.
Towards gender-equitable small-scale fisheries governance and development
This manual aims at providing practical guidance on how to achieve gender-equitable small-scale fisheries in the context of the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. Women play a key role, in particular in post-harvest activities relating to processing, marketing and trade, but their role remains undervalued.
Strengthening Food Security and Sustainable Livelihoods through Small-Scale Fisheries
Where poverty exists in small scale fishing communities, it is multidimensional in nature. As well as dwindling fishery resources and low incomes, it is also the result of factors that impede the full enjoyment of human rights political, economic and social, among others. Despite this, small scale fisheries tend to be inadequately addressed, both in terms of resource management and from a broader social and economic development perspective.
