Financial aid to fisheries in developing countries has declined by 30 percent, finds a new study from UBC and Stockholm Resilience Centre researchers, published in Marine Policy. Projects focusing on climate issues in fisheries had a 77 percent decline over the five years studied.
Financial aid to fisheries in developing countries has declined by 30 percent, finds a new study from UBC and Stockholm Resilience Centre researchers, published in Marine Policy. Projects focusing on climate issues in fisheries had a 77 percent decline over the five years studied.
“Sustainable fisheries make good economic sense not only as a source of employment and regular catches, but also because of their nutritional value,” said co-author Colette Wabnitz, Research Associate at UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries and the Nippon Foundation – UBC Nereus Program “Investments in small-scale, sustainable fisheries enhance climate change resilience and give vulnerable communities access to healthy food while preserving traditional diets.”
These sustainable food sources also limit the spread and prevalence of diet-related chronic diseases. Fisheries and aquaculture supply 17 percent of animal protein and provide livelihoods to 12 percent of the world’s population. Official Development Assistance (ODA), commonly known as aid, is financial assistance to the developing world. From 2010 to 2015, ODA levels increased by over 13% to USD $133 billion, with further increases in 2016 and 2017. Yet, funding to fisheries projects in Oceania dropped by almost half.
“Demonstrating tangible results in fisheries as a result of donor support is often more difficult in the oceans than it is on land,” said co-author Robert Blasiak, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Stockholm Resilience Centre, and a Nippon Foundation Nereus Program Fellow.
Read more at University of British Columbia
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