BY BRIAN OTIENO @Yobramos4
There is a real danger of some fish species being extinct in African marine and inland waters, the African Union has said.
This is because of the over-exploitation of living aquatic species, pollution from several sources and uncontrolled introduction of exotic species into aquatic production systems.
The AU Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources director Huyam Salih, on Tuesday said pollution of the waters is from land-based municipal and agricultural activities, and effluent from mining activities, among others.
“There are many negative impacts coming from mining, oil exploration and transportation, and tourism that affects the fisheries resources. Thus, we needed this project to address these issues,” Salih said.
“The danger is there that we will lose some of those fish species, especially in the inland waters,” the AU-Ibar director said.
She spoke in Mombasa during the third technical and steering committee meeting for the project ‘Conserving Aquatic Biodiversity in African Blue Economy’.
The three-year project, funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, started in October 2021, and was expected to end later this year but has been extended to December 2025.
It aimed to support the AU member states in conserving the biodiversity in the ecosystems of marine and fresh waters.
AU-Ibar, whose office has been in Nairobi since 1952, is mainly mandated to develop animal resources for the continent to ensure food and nutritional security and livelihoods for African citizens.
Salih said Africa has been endowed with vast and rich fisheries and aquaculture resources.
“We have seven large marine ecosystems in the continent besides the lakes and the rivers, the inland waters. But the situation is so bad that in many of the areas we have lost our fisher species,” she said.
The seven marine ecosystems include Agulhas current, Benguela current, Guinea current, Canary current, Mediterranean sea, Red Sea and Somali current ecosystems.
The project looks to protect the ecosystems by having the AU member states ratify global instruments and tool meant to protect the ecosystems.
“The project aims to stop the overfishing and make sure we have replacements for our natural resources, not only for the fishes but also for the plants around the Coastal areas,” Salih said.
She noted centres of excellence need to be identified and designated to do researches and bring the data and figures to show how much the ecosystems are affected.
The centres can also be used to train fishermen and other stakeholders on how to protect their marine areas, rivers and lakes.
She said the AU-Ibar works with different organisations to target women in the sector because they are the most vulnerable.
Some industries have taken over the lands and water.
“Our aim is to ensure even the social-economic impact for the loss in biodiversity is taken care of. We came up with the figures and policies to address those gaps and challenges,” she said.
Migration of the fisheries resources due to climate change and pollution is also a major threat, making the threats transnational, she added.
Salih said having data ensures they can plan well for the ecosystems.
Stephanie Achieng, who works in the AU-Ibar department of rural economy and the blue economy, said many women voices in the sector have been suppressed and cannot be heard.