Reducing vulnerability of fishers, fish farmers
and their communities to
disasters and climate change impacts
Florence Poulain
Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
FAO
florence.poulain@fao.org
Key Messages
 The contribution that fisheries makes to communities and
countries is threatened by the increasing vulnerability of the
people involved in the sector to hazards/disasters.
 The increased interconnectedness between hazards and
climate change suggest that disaster risk management and
climate change adaptation need to be integrated into a
combined strategy , particularly at the land/water interface.
 This suggests that DRM & CCA need to be incorporated into
fisheries policies and plans; and fisheries into DRM and CCA
strategies and plans.
Significance of the sector
 Fish is a major source of nutrition and highquality animal protein – supplying over 4 billion
people with at least 15% of their average
protein intake
 They are a major source of employment to
both men and women - 50 % of ancillary
workers are women
 Fisheries and aquaculture support the
livelihoods of about 540 million (8% of the
world population)
 They contribute significantly to national
economies
Significance of the sector
Shoreline
protection
Building
materials
Food and
water
A means of
social
interaction
Medicines
Tradable
products
A means of
exchange
Fuelwood
A means of
transport
Cultural
significance
Vulnerability and Exposure to Disasters
Fishers, fish farmers and their communities are often some
of the most vulnerable communities to hazards/disasters.
This is due to:
 Exposure: Location
 Livelihoods activities
Poverty
 Limited access to social services
 Low levels of education
 Inadequate organisational structures

Disasters & Disaster types
Disaster: A serious disruption of 1. Storms,
cyclones/hurricanes,
the functioning of a community
tsunamis, earthquakes,
or a society involving
droughts, floods and
widespread human, material,
landslides
economic or environmental
2. Oil spills and
losses and impacts, which
nuclear/radiological
exceeds the ability of the
material
affected community or society
3. Food and nutrition
to cope using its own
security, post conflict,
resources (UNISDR)
HIV/AIDS, aquatic
animal diseases
Impact on the sector
In addition to the tragic loss of life, the effects of
disasters on the fisheries sector can be
the loss of livelihood assets such as boats, gear,
cages, aquaculture ponds and broodstock, post
harvest and processing facilities and landing
sites.
Damage caused by disasters can have impact
social and economical impacts throughout and
well beyond the sector (such as reduced
employment, food availability for example).
 Nearly 80% of disasters caused by natural hazards are
weather or climate related.
 These hazards will change in frequency, intensity, spatial
extent and duration as a result of changing climate
 Changes in weather and climate extremes, and related
impacts, pose new challenges
Source:
IPCC Fourth Assessment Report
And
IPCC Special Report :
Managing the Risk of Extreme Events and Disasters
to Advance Climate Change Adaptation
Reducing the effects of disasters through
Disaster Risk Management
Reducing vulnerabilities:
 Risk assessment
 Prevention and mitigation
 Preparedness
 Early warning
Emergency response:
 Impact and immediate
needs assessment
 Relief, or emergency
response
Transition planning:
 Rehabilitation
 Reconstruction
 Sustainable recovery
Climate change adaptation and
disaster risk management
 Effective DRM needs to consider changing climate
patterns.
 DRM can be a natural entry point for adaptation.
 IPCC (The recognised scientific body for climate
change) has drawn the attention to the need to
integrated DRM, and CCA to better reduce and
manage the risks of extreme events and disasters
in a changing climate.
The Economics of Resilience:
Lessons from Kenya and Ethiopia
Investment in building
the resilience of
communities to cope
with risk in disaster
prone regions is more
cost effective than the
ever mounting
humanitarian
response.
International frameworks
 The Hyogo Framework for Action: Building the Resilience
of Nations and Communities to Disasters
 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC)- Cancun Adaptation Framework
 The Code of conduct for responsible fisheries
 FAO Small Scale Fisheries guidelines (under
development) - discusses the specific vulnerability of smallscale fishing communities to disaster risks and climate
change
 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio+20): one step further?
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized
agency of the United Nations.
Achieving food and nutrition security for all is at the heart of
FAO's mandate. FAO’s strategic objectives include
 Increase the resilience of rural livelihoods to threats and crises
FAO profile
 191 Member Nations, two associate members and one member
organization, the European Union.
FAO/Fisheries disasters types
Since 2005 FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department has
supported emergency response through 135 projects in 25
countries
Complex Emergencies
Tsunami
Tropical Storms
Floods
Earthquakes
Fish disease
DRM programme
APFIC/FAO regional
Meeting, Bangkok,
Thailand, 5 October 2010
Inception workshop on
FAO extrabudgetary
programme on fisheries
and aquaculture, Rome,
27-30 October 2009
Latin America and the
Caribbean regional
meeting, San Jose,
Costa Rica, 19 October
2010
Regional Meeting,
Muscat, Oman, March 25
2012
Africa Regional Meeting,
Maputo, Mozambique, 11
October 2010.
Report recommendations
 There is an urgent need to improve
understanding of the complexity and
vulnerability of the sector to connect
to wider policy framework (e.g.
National adaptation programmes of
action), to develop capacity, systems
and approaches within governments to
much more effectively engage with
disaster risk management and climate
change adaptation.
Report recommendations
 Large information gaps exist. Baseline information
should be routinely gathered from the most vulnerable
communities. The identification of fisheries dependent
communities is a useful classification to have made in
DRM preparedness and should allow for the rapid roll
out of support to fishers in such communities.
 There should be a concerted move away from post
disaster fisheries asset replacement towards more
integrated, livelihood informed, responses.
 It is important to begin considering what could be the
possible impacts of climate change on fisheries
stakeholders and the resources that they depend
upon.
WAY FORWARD
 Strengthening policy
integration/coherence at regional and
national levels, taking community needs
into consideration
 Building and developing capacity of
partners and stakeholders at global,
regional, national and community level to
prepare for and respond to natural
disasters and the impacts of climate
change
 Strengthen partnership collaboration
and coordination of DRM and CCA in
fisheries and aquaculture
WAY FORWARD
Building ecological, economic and
social Resilience
Implementation of ecosystem approach
to fisheries and aquaculture, the Code of
Conduct for Responsible Fisheries
Livelihood diversification, public and
private insurance
Supporting national planning and
coordination in fisheries/aquaculture,
DRM and CCA
Thank you