Feature Address by Dr. Renata Clarke, Sub-Regional Coordinator for the Caribbean, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Ladies and gentlemen, esteemed participants,

It is truly a privilege for me to be a part of the landmark 20th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the CRFM.  A privilege because of the enormity of the responsibility of the CRFM for the future of the Caribbean. We call ourselves Big Ocean States, this should not simply be the statement of a geographical reality, but it should reflect our positioning and our authority on the management of oceans.

CRFM has achieved much over its lifetime. It has driven the development and approval of the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy; it has led the development and endorsement of a Protocol on securing sustainable small-scale fisheries for Caribbean community fisherfolk and societies in line with relevant international GLS; it is currently garnering regional agreement on a number of fisheries management protocols. The excellent collaboration between FAO and CRFM has brought many benefits to the fisheries in the region. Several resources, such as spiny lobster, queen conch, flying fish and billfish are now much better managed than two decades ago. I congratulate the CRFM Secretariat, and particularly Dr. Milton Haughton, with these great achievements. However, the charge given to me by Executive Director Haughton is to focus on the future. The call of our Leaders is for transformation – urgent and ambitious transformation. So while there is plenty for which CRFM should be congratulated this is not the moment for resting on one’s laurels but to re-commit, with unwavering determination, to forge a path that positions our region as a true leader in sustainable fisheries development. 

As I started to think about what I wanted to say, I realized that there were two themes that rather strikingly run through most of the points. One is the need for better data for better decisions and for greater influence.  The other is innovation.  There is no short-cut to effective governance and sustainable management of natural resources and, in this marine resources. It will require solid planning and adequate investment.

There are a few issues that I would like to speak to and the first of these is Fisheries Governance. It is important at national, regional and international levels. It involves policies, legislation, management, and competent institutions responsible for these. In the Caribbean we have a tendency to be “siloed”; Fisheries Authorities increasingly need to be interacting with those responsible for tourism, for land and waste management, for energy, for maritime transport. This is the only way that we can optimize the Blue Economy. Additionally, succession planning within Fisheries is essential to attract and maintain highly performing staff to ensure continued excellence in the performance of the sector. Leadership is not an “on and off thing”. Innovation in data gathering and data management - including in relation to the use of AI (particularly AI-driven species recognition systems) and drones and improved and harmonized data management systems – will be key in enabling the Caribbean to be leaders in the Blue transformation. At the regional level CRFM and WECAFC should further strengthen their fisheries management capacities.  The migratory and transboundary nature of our fisheries resources means that sustainability of our fisheries cannot be realized by CRFM members alone. 

Internationally, Caribbean countries should speak with one voice to protect our interests in ongoing processes, including ensuring a presence in the Negotiating Group on Rules for the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. We should participate in the future Conference of the Parties for the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ), at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). In this latter Commission, I am aware of ongoing discussions critical to the sustainability of the global Tuna fishery in which the Caribbean countries are absent. How can that be given the importance of the Tuna Fishery to us? Finally, countries must engage increasingly effectively in FAO’s Committee on Fisheries and its sub-committees. In these global fora, the global agenda is decided. Let us not simply follow others’ agendas.

Issue No 2 - Developing our fisheries value chains. Globally around 30% of the fish caught is lost or wasted before it reaches consumers i.e. nearly one of every 3 fishes caught does not contribute to improved food security. There is a lot to gain by improving fish handling, hygiene, food safety and quality. We have the tools available to do so, to ensure traceability, and to realize more inclusive and equitable returns for those working in and investing in the value chains. For the most important commercial species we need to enhance their value without increasing fishing pressure.  The global fishing and aquaculture sector is very innovative with fishing gear technologies, fishing vessel innovations, green energy use and energy savings for vessels and in fish processing plants. FAO can facilitate the transfer of these technologies and other innovations to the Caribbean. In fact, we have been facilitating such innovation in various countries of the Caribbean and we remain “at your service”, “your partner in development”. 

Aquaculture development has been a promise for many years in the Caribbean, but few successful developments exist. There are exciting developments with aquaculture and mariculture. The concept of integrated multitrophic aquaculture, where multiple species are cultivated concurrently – think finfish or shrimp alongside organisms that utilize their waste, such as mollusks and macroalgae – presents a groundbreaking approach. In the Caribbean we need to aggressively investigate these and adapt them to our social and environmental context.  CRFM has a vision for mariculture and aquaculture development and FAO can offer south-south collaboration and direct technical assistance to support this. 

My third point is a call to be on top of CC – driven impacts in the ocean environment. We know that there are shifting ocean currents, rising sea temperatures, altered salinity, changing pH levels, and intensified storms. Fish distribution changes and habitat losses, particularly coral reefs, contribute to declining fish populations. It has been estimated that climate change could precipitate a potential yearly fish value loss of $1.21 to $2.72 billion across the Caribbean and Latin America. Given our ambitions in building the fisheries sector and Blue economy, it behooves us to monitor our changing environment so that we can mitigate the negative impacts. The sargassum blooms are nightmarish. These large mats block sunlight, decrease water oxygen levels, and smother seagrasses and coral reefs.  They also affect movement of fish and safety and movement of Fisherfolk.  We are still unable to find an optimal approach for managing the macro algal sargassum blooms.  CRFM has a leading role in finding the partnerships that can help us find scalable solutions. 

While it is not our biggest problem, I do want to raise a flag about marine biotoxins as I find that it is generally ignored. Anecdotal reports of increasing ciguatera outbreaks and newer reports of other biotoxins produced by marine dinoflagellates point to the need for better surveillance and monitoring. Particularly if we want our fish to be seen as safe and high quality by locals and importers alike.

Point 4 - Increasing resilience of the fisheries sector is key. Extreme weather, climate and water-related events are increasing in frequency and intensity in the Caribbean. Fishing communities are often most vulnerable to hurricanes and floods. To save lives and enable fisherfolk to quickly restart their livelihoods, resilience needs to be built. We can do so through insurance schemes, social protection schemes, but also through making fisheries infrastructure climate proof. Early warning systems, safety at sea training, and adaptation of fishing vessels to the new reality, are also investments we need to make. An innovative initiative of FAO is the establishment of a boat bank. This would reduce response time after disasters in fishing communities to 4 weeks. We would rapidly deploy high quality, cheaper and safer small-scale fishing boats. The boats would be shipped in containers together with outboard motors, fishing gears and safety equipment to immediately restart fishing activities. Food security and income earning opportunities would be restored 80% faster than is currently the case.

Esteemed colleagues, ladies and gentlemen - If our label as “Big Ocean States” is to signify more than a mere geographical reality we have a lot to do and CRFM will be seminal in guiding the Blue Transformation that is essential for the Caribbean.