Integration of habitat conservation into fishery management in the South China Sea areas enhanced via the fisheries refugia approach

In the South China Sea area, the integration of habitat and biodiversity conservation into fishery management and practices has been improved through the efforts of concerned communities and governments. This approach is made possible under the Project “Establishment and Operation of a Regional System of Fisheries Refugia in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand,” which received funding support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and was implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). With the main focus of establishing a regional system of fisheries management areas (fisheries refugia) in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, the project is executed by the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC) in partnership with the Fisheries Departments of the riparian countries of South China Sea, namely: Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam. Initially planned for 48 months from January 2017 until December 2020, the Project duration was extended until December 2022 to complete the implementation of the Project activities that had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic situation from January 2020 to March 2022.

Nevertheless, as of March 2022, the communities in the fisheries refugia sites of participating countries have been working towards enhancing the integration of habitat and biodiversity conservation into fishery management and practices of the identified aquatic species that the respective countries had identified economically important. The effective management of critical threats to 12 of 14 fisheries refugia sites of about 660,236 ha is expected to be adopted by 2022. It is about 2.5 folds higher than the proposed refugia areas adopted by the GEF. The project results can restore fish stocks and habitats, essential parts of the marine ecosystem, particularly to the SDG 14.2 on sustainably managing and protecting marine and coastal ecosystems to avoid significant adverse impacts. In addition, the results also support SDG14.4 for effectively regulating harvesting and ending overfishing, illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, and destructive fishing practices and implement science-based management plans to restore fish stocks in the shortest time the SDG14.4.

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Highlights the Results of the

Fifth Meeting of Regional Scientific and Technical Committee (RSTC5)

16-17 March 2022 

The 5^th Regional Scientific and Technical Committee Meeting (RSTC5) was convened by the Project Coordination Unit on 16-17 March 2022; this is a virtual meeting via the Zoom platform. The meeting updated the progress on national and regional programs implemented as of 31 December 2021. The meeting discussed the progress works by each country's partners, recommendations from the Mid-term Review, the first draft guidelines on Indicators for sustainable management of fisheries refugia, the marine and coastal planning of six participating countries, the proposed regional training workshop on larval fish identification and early life history study, as well as the financial report as of 31 December 2021.

• RESULTS OF THE MID-TERM REVIEW

A Mid-Term Review of the SEAFDEC/UNEP/GEF Project: Establishment and Operation of a Regional System of Fisheries Refugia in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand has been undertaken, consistent with the requirements of the GEF and UNEP by Dr. Peter Whalley between November 2021 and February 2022. The review is designed to inform stakeholders, including the GEF Agency and Executing Agency, on the levels of achievement of the project towards the delivery of the planned outputs and outcomes and provide suggestions to the Project on key activities that would assist enable the achievement of the overall planned objective.

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