Fisheries Extension Education (2+1)

3.3.2 Co-management

Co-management is not a regulatory mechanism rather it is a participatory and flexible management strategy. It provides and maintains a forum or structure for action on: participation, rule making, conflict management, power sharing, leadership, decision-making, negotiation, knowledge sharing, learning and development, among resource users severs and government. It is not giving the rights over fishery resources to somebody, but it is sharing the responsibility with the resource users and other stakeholders for resource management and conflicts management.

Fisheries co-management can be defined as a partnership arrangement in which the local resource users (fisher folk), the government and other relevant stakeholders share the responsibility and the authority for the management of fisheries. Fishers should primarily have the right to participate in key decisions about various aspects of management.

The focus in co-management is small-scale fishers because they contribute the major part of the fishery sector. Their contribution to local food security is significant. Further, they are weak because of poor financial conditions and their technical capabilities. Hence, some kind of government support, as envisaged in co-management, is needed for their social and economic securities.