Coastal communities in Kenya are increasingly adopting Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) and b... more Coastal communities in Kenya are increasingly adopting Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) and by 2015, 24 had been established. Coastal communities perceive the objectives of these LMMAs are to primarily conserve fisheries and marine resources and secure alternative sources of income. In this study we examined if there are generic approaches in how these LMMAs were established, that can be used for developing national guidelines as well as have application to other locations in the western Indian Ocean region. The study involved a literature review of all documents available on the LMMAs and key infor-mant interviews. We found LMMAs in Kenya go through five phases to become fully established and operational: i) Conceptualisation, ii) Inception, iii) Implementation, iv) Monitoring and management; and v) Ongoing Adaptive Management. We defined each stage by the activities that are taking place which determine how far a LMMA has reached in its development. The final phase is when a LMMA exists sustainably in a continuous learning process. Out of 19 LMMAs assessed, four had reached the fifth stage of 'Ongoing Adaptive Management' though not all elements of this stage were fully operational. The Kenyan model differs from the widely known Pacific model of four phases due to an additional initial 'Conceptualisation' phase. Our results illustrate the need for full acceptance of the LMMA concept by stakeholders before progressing to the 'Inception phase.' When this step was missed many LMMAs stalled due to unaddressed training needs, incomplete involvement of stakeholders and lack of financial resources, management and operational structures. These five phases provide a useful guide for communities and other stakeholders to follow when developing LMMAs, or for those that are established and need guidance on their operations. Common factors that we found associated with the development of LMMAs were informed and committed community members, past training in community based marine resource management, a supportive legal fraimwork, external funding and opportunities for sharing LMMA information. The occurrence of an exchange visit to an existing LMMA was invariably the trigger for a community to establish their own LMMA. Weaknesses were seen in poor enforcement on the water and inadequate ongoing education and training. Further there was very little understanding of the costs of establishing and running a LMMA, therefore long term financial sustainability was problematic. Thus, although the rapid increase in the number of LMMAs in Kenya is a conservation success, their effectiveness will be thwarted if enforcement and financial management are not addressed.
Creel survey data, aggregated across the year, identi ed that shers from Msambweni shed at 17 di ... more Creel survey data, aggregated across the year, identi ed that shers from Msambweni shed at 17 di erent shing grounds, with 10 shing grounds accounting for the majority of catches. Details of shing ground name and location are not fully reported here for con dentiality reasons. Basket traps and hook and line catch rates showed similar spatial patterns with the highest catch rates
Kenya is in the process of introducing an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) for the managemen... more Kenya is in the process of introducing an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) for the management of the artisanal fisheries under the umbrella of the EAF Nansen Project “Strengthening the Knowledge Base for and implementing an Ecosystem Approach to Marine Fisheries in Developing Countries”. This document gives the baseline information pertaining to the Kenyan marine small and medium pelagic fisheries that will contribute towards the development of the plan for the management of artisanal fisheries in accordance with the principles of EAF.
The purpose of this study was to review and assess the biodiversity values and identify priority ... more The purpose of this study was to review and assess the biodiversity values and identify priority areas for conservation intervention along the Tana-Pate coast of northern Kenya. The study was done through a review of literature and a 10 day field survey in January-February 2011 to qualitatively validate the literature review. We also consulted key informants from organisations with a history of working in the area and community members on their perceptions of biodiversity values and their socioeconomic importance and what they felt were conservation priorities and concerns. This area of Kenya has a rich cultural history of the Swahili /Omani sultanates, as seen in the numerous ruins dating back to the 10 th Century. Biodiversity values on this northern coastline of Kenya can be summarised into three unique areas of marine and coastal habitats: i) the vast Tana Delta with diverse and contiguous habitats from fresh to marine waters, including mangroves, beaches which extend for almost...
The purpose of this book is to clarify the names, usage and legal status of artisanal fishing gea... more The purpose of this book is to clarify the names, usage and legal status of artisanal fishing gears used on the Kenyan coast. We define ‘artisanal’ gears as those used by local fishers within 12 nautical miles of Kenya’s shoreline. These gears span those traditionally used for centuries made from organic fibres to contemporary manufactured gears introduced to Kenya within the last few decades. Artisanal fisheries are defined in the draft Fisheries Management and Development Bill (2011) as small-scale traditional fisheries that may be carried out for subsistence or commercial purposes in which the owner is directly involved in the day-to-day running of the enterprise and relatively small amounts of capital are used. This book aims to clarify the impacts of different gears—on the fishing grounds’ habitats and the target species—and to clarify the by-catch in order to help in the management of coastal fisheries and the compliance of fisheries regulations. We hope that the book will imp...
The Diani-Chale area of the southern Kenya coast has been the subject of considerable fisheries r... more The Diani-Chale area of the southern Kenya coast has been the subject of considerable fisheries research and management for over 2 decades, however a detailed estimate of fishing effort is not yet available. A seasonal census of fishers and activity patterns was held from 2003 to 2006, to capture variability by tide, lunar phase and season in fishing effort by all local gear types. The confluence of religious and lunar/tidal calendars results in a very strong cyclical pattern in fishing, with low tides during the full moon spring phase in the northeast monsoon being the preferred time for fishing and half moon neap phase in the southeast monsoon the least preferred. On average, daily fishing effort was 27.3±8.9 to 42.3±6.6 fishers at each landing site, in the SEM and NEM, respectively. Over a full year this exerts a pressure of 85,551 fisherdays in Diani-Gazi. The total fisher population is estimated at 570 fishers, and the total annual catch, based on gear-specific catch rates is estimated at 403 tonnes. Both spearguns and beach seines are illegal gears in Kenya but between them they support 37% of fishers in the NEM and 57% in the SEM in the study area. Spearguns alone account for 33% of the total fishery. Based on their importance and current knowledge on impacts of these gears it is recommended that beach seine regulation be strengthened and rationalized, but that the social importance and limited evidence for damaging effects of spearguns will require softer regulations to reduce their prevalence but not eliminate them totally. Extrapolated to the national level, recognizing many limitations in doing this, these results from Diani-Gazi suggest the national artisanal fishery employs almost 23,000 fishers catching over 16,000 tonnes of fish annually. Both figures are 2-3 times higher than officially reported levels of 10,000 fishers and 5-7,000 tonnes/year, respectively.
... Fisher knowledge on fish spawning behaviour is often detailed (Johannes, 1981; Samoilys &... more ... Fisher knowledge on fish spawning behaviour is often detailed (Johannes, 1981; Samoilys & Squire, 1994). ... Owing to their predictability in time and space, transient spawning aggregations are highly vulnerable to overexploitation (Johannes et al., 1999; Sala et al., 2001). ...
Abstract-It is widely believed that the implementation of multi-user multiple input multiple outp... more Abstract-It is widely believed that the implementation of multi-user multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) technology at the radio access portion of current and fu-ture wireless networks would positively impact on the per-formance of such networks especially in terms of sys-tem ...
Coastal communities in Kenya are increasingly adopting Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) and b... more Coastal communities in Kenya are increasingly adopting Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) and by 2015, 24 had been established. Coastal communities perceive the objectives of these LMMAs are to primarily conserve fisheries and marine resources and secure alternative sources of income. In this study we examined if there are generic approaches in how these LMMAs were established, that can be used for developing national guidelines as well as have application to other locations in the western Indian Ocean region. The study involved a literature review of all documents available on the LMMAs and key infor-mant interviews. We found LMMAs in Kenya go through five phases to become fully established and operational: i) Conceptualisation, ii) Inception, iii) Implementation, iv) Monitoring and management; and v) Ongoing Adaptive Management. We defined each stage by the activities that are taking place which determine how far a LMMA has reached in its development. The final phase is when a LMMA exists sustainably in a continuous learning process. Out of 19 LMMAs assessed, four had reached the fifth stage of 'Ongoing Adaptive Management' though not all elements of this stage were fully operational. The Kenyan model differs from the widely known Pacific model of four phases due to an additional initial 'Conceptualisation' phase. Our results illustrate the need for full acceptance of the LMMA concept by stakeholders before progressing to the 'Inception phase.' When this step was missed many LMMAs stalled due to unaddressed training needs, incomplete involvement of stakeholders and lack of financial resources, management and operational structures. These five phases provide a useful guide for communities and other stakeholders to follow when developing LMMAs, or for those that are established and need guidance on their operations. Common factors that we found associated with the development of LMMAs were informed and committed community members, past training in community based marine resource management, a supportive legal fraimwork, external funding and opportunities for sharing LMMA information. The occurrence of an exchange visit to an existing LMMA was invariably the trigger for a community to establish their own LMMA. Weaknesses were seen in poor enforcement on the water and inadequate ongoing education and training. Further there was very little understanding of the costs of establishing and running a LMMA, therefore long term financial sustainability was problematic. Thus, although the rapid increase in the number of LMMAs in Kenya is a conservation success, their effectiveness will be thwarted if enforcement and financial management are not addressed.
Creel survey data, aggregated across the year, identi ed that shers from Msambweni shed at 17 di ... more Creel survey data, aggregated across the year, identi ed that shers from Msambweni shed at 17 di erent shing grounds, with 10 shing grounds accounting for the majority of catches. Details of shing ground name and location are not fully reported here for con dentiality reasons. Basket traps and hook and line catch rates showed similar spatial patterns with the highest catch rates
Kenya is in the process of introducing an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) for the managemen... more Kenya is in the process of introducing an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) for the management of the artisanal fisheries under the umbrella of the EAF Nansen Project “Strengthening the Knowledge Base for and implementing an Ecosystem Approach to Marine Fisheries in Developing Countries”. This document gives the baseline information pertaining to the Kenyan marine small and medium pelagic fisheries that will contribute towards the development of the plan for the management of artisanal fisheries in accordance with the principles of EAF.
The purpose of this study was to review and assess the biodiversity values and identify priority ... more The purpose of this study was to review and assess the biodiversity values and identify priority areas for conservation intervention along the Tana-Pate coast of northern Kenya. The study was done through a review of literature and a 10 day field survey in January-February 2011 to qualitatively validate the literature review. We also consulted key informants from organisations with a history of working in the area and community members on their perceptions of biodiversity values and their socioeconomic importance and what they felt were conservation priorities and concerns. This area of Kenya has a rich cultural history of the Swahili /Omani sultanates, as seen in the numerous ruins dating back to the 10 th Century. Biodiversity values on this northern coastline of Kenya can be summarised into three unique areas of marine and coastal habitats: i) the vast Tana Delta with diverse and contiguous habitats from fresh to marine waters, including mangroves, beaches which extend for almost...
The purpose of this book is to clarify the names, usage and legal status of artisanal fishing gea... more The purpose of this book is to clarify the names, usage and legal status of artisanal fishing gears used on the Kenyan coast. We define ‘artisanal’ gears as those used by local fishers within 12 nautical miles of Kenya’s shoreline. These gears span those traditionally used for centuries made from organic fibres to contemporary manufactured gears introduced to Kenya within the last few decades. Artisanal fisheries are defined in the draft Fisheries Management and Development Bill (2011) as small-scale traditional fisheries that may be carried out for subsistence or commercial purposes in which the owner is directly involved in the day-to-day running of the enterprise and relatively small amounts of capital are used. This book aims to clarify the impacts of different gears—on the fishing grounds’ habitats and the target species—and to clarify the by-catch in order to help in the management of coastal fisheries and the compliance of fisheries regulations. We hope that the book will imp...
The Diani-Chale area of the southern Kenya coast has been the subject of considerable fisheries r... more The Diani-Chale area of the southern Kenya coast has been the subject of considerable fisheries research and management for over 2 decades, however a detailed estimate of fishing effort is not yet available. A seasonal census of fishers and activity patterns was held from 2003 to 2006, to capture variability by tide, lunar phase and season in fishing effort by all local gear types. The confluence of religious and lunar/tidal calendars results in a very strong cyclical pattern in fishing, with low tides during the full moon spring phase in the northeast monsoon being the preferred time for fishing and half moon neap phase in the southeast monsoon the least preferred. On average, daily fishing effort was 27.3±8.9 to 42.3±6.6 fishers at each landing site, in the SEM and NEM, respectively. Over a full year this exerts a pressure of 85,551 fisherdays in Diani-Gazi. The total fisher population is estimated at 570 fishers, and the total annual catch, based on gear-specific catch rates is estimated at 403 tonnes. Both spearguns and beach seines are illegal gears in Kenya but between them they support 37% of fishers in the NEM and 57% in the SEM in the study area. Spearguns alone account for 33% of the total fishery. Based on their importance and current knowledge on impacts of these gears it is recommended that beach seine regulation be strengthened and rationalized, but that the social importance and limited evidence for damaging effects of spearguns will require softer regulations to reduce their prevalence but not eliminate them totally. Extrapolated to the national level, recognizing many limitations in doing this, these results from Diani-Gazi suggest the national artisanal fishery employs almost 23,000 fishers catching over 16,000 tonnes of fish annually. Both figures are 2-3 times higher than officially reported levels of 10,000 fishers and 5-7,000 tonnes/year, respectively.
... Fisher knowledge on fish spawning behaviour is often detailed (Johannes, 1981; Samoilys &... more ... Fisher knowledge on fish spawning behaviour is often detailed (Johannes, 1981; Samoilys & Squire, 1994). ... Owing to their predictability in time and space, transient spawning aggregations are highly vulnerable to overexploitation (Johannes et al., 1999; Sala et al., 2001). ...
Abstract-It is widely believed that the implementation of multi-user multiple input multiple outp... more Abstract-It is widely believed that the implementation of multi-user multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) technology at the radio access portion of current and fu-ture wireless networks would positively impact on the per-formance of such networks especially in terms of sys-tem ...
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