THE LACUSTRINE PROTECTED AREA

RECOGNISING THE URGENCY OF A LAKE UNDER SIEGE BY ILLEGAL FISHING PRACTICES, RESEARCH WAS CARRIED OUT AND CANVASSED FOR THE LPA, WHICH WAS OFFICIALLY ESTABLISHED IN 2007. SINCE THEN THIS FISH SAFE HAVEN HAD BEEN LEFT TO FEND FOR ITSELF UNTIL THE ARRIVAL OF KUOKOA, AN INITIATIVE WHICH HAS ENERGISED EFFORTS AND TAKEN THE ORIGINAL MISSION OF THE LPA, TO boost FISH STOCKS AND develop EMPLOYMENT oportunities FOR FISHERMEN, UPON ITSELF.

Kuokoa has been dedicated to the sustainable development of the Lacustrine Protected Area by empowering subsistence fishermen around the Koome Archipelago to build their understanding of the detrimental effect of illegal fishing and demonstrate how good stewardship of the lake environment can improve economic opportunities for local islanders. Alongside local and government stakeholders we are working to uphold legal regulations such as minimum boat, net and catch size while expanding education of responsible business practices and fisheries management. We work tirelessly to assist local fishermen to invest in legal equipment and to protect the vital role the LPA has of providing a breeding ground for diminished Nile Tilapia and Nile Perch fish species.

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THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LPA

Some 30 million people rely on Lake Victoria for their livelihood in East Africa. It has long been documented that the catches of Nile Perch and Nile Tilapia in the region have declined rapidly over the past few decades; coupled with a fast growing population and a rising necessity for an available source of protein.  With a poorly regulated fishery the inevitable response is for the fishermen to move towards smaller, more damaging mono-filament nets and increasingly active fishing methods, which catch undersized and immature fish before they have had the chance to breed.  With the rise in illegal catch the majority of the fish is unrecorded and taken to makeshift landing sites which litter the shores of the lake.  Although not the sole answer to solving the problem, the LPA concept would contribute massively to reversing the detrimental effects of overfishing in localised areas.  Just south of Uganda’s capital city Kampala, the shallow waters of the Koome archipelago are a perfect breeding ground for both Nile Perch and Nile Tilapia.  Providing these species with a sanctuary is vital to giving them a chance to reach maturity and reproduce at the levels that are needed to make fish stocks in Lake Victoria plentiful for generations to come.

The LPA has been chosen to pilot a revolutionary fisheries co-management solution for the region that has the potential to empower the most vulnerable individuals in Uganda's threatened fishing industry.  If successful in bringing about the socio-economic benefits that the local community requires alongside the regeneration of fish stocks and the lake ecosystem, the socially-just LPA conservation model will be expanded and replicated in other sites across the country to become the standard model for all of Uganda's fisheries.

LPA MAP - DOWNLOAD HERE

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COMMUNITY FISHING CO-OPERATIVES

Our goal is to achieve a holistic, functioning fish reserve.  A functioning reserve is a breeding area that protects the lake environment, boosts fish stocks and lends itself to important research.  With often stretched resources to maintain the reserve we must look at innovative sustainable options that are more resilient to obstacles we are sure to face in the future.  Our main challenges in running a reserve are; a lack of resources for security, lack of compliance from local fishermen, lack of resources for maintained and the ability to maintain long-term research for informed decision making.

Uganda is a predominantly artisan fishery with most fish caught in wooden boats by subsistence fishermen from local communities.  As an open-access fishery, Lake Victoria has a large migratory fisher-folk population moving from one area of above average abundance of fish to the next.  This has led to a new tradition of ecological depletion and bad lake stewardship which the lake environment has struggled to recover from. 

The implementation of community-based fishing co-operatives is the first step in empowering local fishing communities to care more for their local fishery.  Registering fishermen to a specific landing site prevents the movement of boats, giving rise to better control of how lake resources are being harvested.  The effectiveness of co-operatives as a tool to transform local industry has made them grow in popularity and implementation around the world.  Research and experience from successful co-operatives around the world have shown again and again that these systems directly benefit local communities and encourage stewardship of marine resources. These programs are frequently designed to:

  • Improve management at a fine scale. Local science and community participation in fishery management allows for locally-appropriate decision-making.

  • Directly benefit habitat conservation. By allocating a specific marine area, co-operatives encourage the conservation of fish stocks and the marine ecosystem. Fishermen are rewarded for protecting habitats and fishing responsibly.

  • Directly benefit small, local fishery-dependent communities. Co-operatives can increase the income of artisanal fishermen and support food security for the communities that rely on the resource.

In our case we wish to take the concept of fishing co-operatives and pair it with our LPA fish breeding area.  This process involves identifying specific zones within the reserve and allocating them to a controlled number of local fishermen.  These areas are chosen using findings from an ecological survey as well as the knowledge of local fishermen.  Theory and practice show that fishermen have greater incentive to help implement, enforce and manage protected areas when they directly benefit from the boost in resources that result. This socially just approach to conservation is growing in interest globally, allowing local fishermen to reap the rewards of being responsible stewards of their fisheries while also mitigating the lack of resources needed to maintain a no-take fish breeding area.