This document discusses co-management of fishing rights and lagoon resources between fishing authorities and fisheries associations (FAs) in Vietnam. It outlines several immediate issues FAs need to address, including increasing membership coverage, fully collecting fees, strengthening executive board operation, raising awareness among fishers, enhancing monitoring and enforcement, gaining support from authorities, and coordinating with neighboring FAs. The document emphasizes that co-management requires participation of local resource users and authorities to jointly manage activities like zoning plans, fishing gear arrangements, and allocating fishing rights.

1. Fishing Rights and
Lagoon Co-management
- For Better Understanding -
22 July 2010
Baku Takahashi, IMOLA Project
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2. 1. Understanding Fishing Rights
and Co-Management
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3. Co-Management is Sharing of
Responsibilities and Tasks
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Authorities
= public agency
Fisheries
Associations
= fishers’ organization
Fishing Rights
Resource Management
Responsibilities
CO-MANAGEMENT

4. Benefits of Co-Management
• Participation of resource users into the management process
would increase the sense of ownership on the issues
• Well-consulted and agreed-upon management regulations
would have better compliance by resource users
• Self-management among the local resource users creates
more pressures or more incentives to follow the regulation
due to social cohesion
• Resource management by the local FAs could reduce the
burden on the authorities as well as management cost
• Local FAs have better knowledge on how to control fisheries
activities (e.g., location and timing of illegal fishing)
• And many more…
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5. Interrelationship among
Three Key Activities
Fishing Rights
Allocation
Zoning Plan
Fishing Gear
Rearrangement
Fishing Rights will be
allocated based on
the zoning plan
(FR is area based)
Content of fishing
rights would be
changed if fishing
gear is rearranged
Fixed fishing gear
area is a type of
areas in the zoning
plan
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6. 2. Immediate Issues that
FAs Need to Tackle
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7. Issues that FAs Need to Tackle
1. Membership coverage
2. Fee collection
3. EB operation
4. Awareness raising of fishers
5. Monitoring and enforcement
6. Authorities’ support to FAs
7. Coordination with neighboring FAs
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8. Membership Coverage
• Many fishers using FA water surface in Huong Tra
are still not members of the FAs  include
them!!
• The fishers should know that they would not be
allowed to fish if they are not FA members (after
the fishing rights allocation) -- it is not an option
but obligation of the fishers to be FA members.
• The above (disadvantage of not being FA
members) should be communicated to all fishers
using FA water surface in HT.
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9. Fee Collection
• Fees are the main sources of income for the FAs to
undertake the lagoon management at this moment.
• Membership fee has not been fully collected from FA
members.
• A strong initiative needed to collect the fee fully by EB
and sub-group leaders (weak efforts at this moment).
• The EB and sub-group leaders should strongly stand
against non-payees (non-payment would eventually
undermine the very foundation of FAs).
• The above will be the same for resource user fees.
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10. EB Operation
• The EB is very important group representing and steering
the FAs with heavy responsibility.
• The EB should take initiative to start the FA activities
rather than being passive (do not wait for instructions
from someone).
• EB allowance support from IMOLA will be finished soon –
need to switch the source to the FA Fund.
• Two issues to be discussed:
– Number of EB members -- is everyone working actively and
effectively ? non-active ones should be removed from EB.
– Level of EB allowance -- the level can be adjusted by FAs.
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11. Awareness Raising of Fishers
• All fishers (including non-members) should be
informed and understand well of:
1. FA functions
2. Lagoon zoning
3. Lagoon management regulations
• The EB and members should make a maximum
efforts to disseminate the above info using word,
meeting, workshop, training, leaflet, loud
speaker, radio, TV, and other possible media.
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12. Monitoring and Enforcement
• Monitoring and enforcement including patrolling
should be enhanced further as they will be keys
for successful implementation of the
management regulations
• NO enforcement = NO impacts!!
• The violation should be handled seriously and
equally without personal favor and coziness
• Police should provide full support to the
patrolling team.
• Frequency of patrolling should be increased.
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13. 13

14. Authorities’ Support to FAs
• As lagoon co-management is a joint and
collaborative process of management, the
authorities including CPC, district, and
province should also consider how they can
support the process.
• Local FAs should actively send a request for
support to the authorities (e.g., through PFA
to the Provincial DARD).
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15. It is important to know who (which FAs) are operating
and managing the lagoon water around your FA to
avoid conflicts and for better coordination.

16. In the Future…
(after the Fishing Rights Allocation)
1. Fishers can no longer fish freely everywhere
anytime in any ways – all fishers should be
members of FAs and follow their regulations
– this is to conserve common resources of all
fishers
2. All water surface will be under the
management of FAs – no-one should enter
the water for exploitation purpose without
informing and registering under the FAs
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17. Steps in Operationalizing
Lagoon Co-Management
Initial survey of
local conditions
Est.and
strengthening
of FAs
Lagoon co-
management
planning
Lagoon co-
management
implementation
M&E
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Preparatory Inception Planning Implementation M&E
2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2010 2010-
Fist contact to fishers FA mobilization meetings Community res mapping User and gear registration Criteria & indicators
Socio-econ surveys FA mobilization board est. Lagoon mgmt strategies Patrolling & conflict mgmt M&E framework est.
PRA-SLA surveys Awareness raising of fishers Lagoon mgmt regulations Environ conservation M&E schedules
Co-mgmt F/S FA charter development Water surface demarcation Awareness raising, training… M&E implementation
… EB and sub-group est. Zoning plan FA econ activities Feedback to FAs
Formal est. of FAs User fee system dev. Pilot projects …
Meetings and congresses Patrolling team est. Meetings and congresses
Traditional festivals … CMB and fishing rights … …

18. Thank you very much
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