Dec. 2005: Support to the Sub-Regional Fisheries Commission (CSRP), West Africa.

The rich fisheries resources of West African marine waters provide a livelihood for millions of people. They are utilized by local artisanal fishermen as well as by industrial fleets based in the wider region, Europe or other parts of the world, and not always operating legally. Seven West African States from Mauritania to the Cape Verdian Islands and Sierra Leone have founded a Sub-Regional Fisheries Commission (CSRP) in order to harmonize their fisheries policies and improve enforcement of fisheries rules.

The German government supports these efforts by a technical assistance project, which is implemented by the consultant consortium of GOPA (lead) and COFAD, commissioned by GTZ. For the coming two years, the project shall strengthen the capabilities of CSRP to effectively and efficiently coordinate monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) and fisheries management of the seven member states.

Nov. 2005: Update of the Mid-Term Evaluation of the German FIFG Operational Programmes. The Mid-Term Evaluations of the two German programmes under the Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG), carried out by COFAD in 2003, were updated in 2005. The final reports have now been submitted to clients, i.e. Federal and State Ministries in charge. Focus is on recommendations relating to subsequent programmes under the new European Fisheries Fund (EFF).

May-Dec. 2005: Support to the Food Sector, Kosovo.

COFAD-Expert Horst Broeske in Kosovar TV

In the context of a GTZ Project in support of the Kosovar food sector, also the fisheries and aquaculture sector receives assistance. Focal points are the development of trout farming, in particular the organisation of the sector, training, production technology, management, processing and marketing as well as fish health. Reference for the development are EU standards. Development efforts consist of a combination of studies, practical training and extension to individual businesses. Entrusted with this component is COFAD.

May 2005: Mediation offered as a new service. No other instrument can settle disputes and conflicts faster, cheaper and more efficiently but mediation. As experts we often experience how money, time and nerves are wasted in legal proceedings, where mediation out of court could, within short time, bring about settlements acceptable to all parties, provided the parties have an interest to reach an agreement.

Because we are convinced of the potentials of mediation, we aim to contribute to its wider application in the fisheries sector. With the qualification of one of our staff members as a Mediator / Dispute Resolver (Institut für Sachverständigenwesen, Köln, and Academy of Experts, London; Member of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Mediation DGM), we have extended our scope of services.

Dec. 2004: COFAD launches new website. Our website now corresponds to current standards such as xhtml and css and is optimised for fast loading and compatibility to most browsers.

In case you encounter problems with the new website, please contact cofad@cofad.de.

March 2004: COFAD completes study on coastal fisheries.

Coastal areas of Lower Saxony

The study, carried out on behalf of the Ministry of Rural Areas and Agriculture of Lower Saxony, describes and analyses the development of coastal fisheries, its political, legal, economic and ecological conditions and the resource situation. From this, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats were deducted, development objectives and measures were formulated. Core elements of the work were a participatory workshop with representatives from the fishery sector and the processing of data on fisheries and competing forms of utilising the sea, such as marine dumping, offshore energy production, marine mining, sea transport/shipping, conservation areas etc., with the help of a geographical information system (GIS).

Aug. 2003: COFAD is charged by the Ministry of Rural Areas, Food, Agriculture, Rural Development and Consumer Protection of Lower Saxony, Germany, to conduct a study on the development, present state and perspectives of the coastal fisheries sector. The study investigates the historic development of coastal fisheries in the State's share of the North Sea and analyses their political, legal, socio-economic and environmental frame conditions as well as conflicts with other forms of coastal resources utilization. It identifies development constraints, options and targets, and proposes measures of intervention and support.

March/May 2003: On behalf of the FAO-Cooperative Program COFAD assists the Islamic Republic of Iran to assess and formulate the aquaculture and fisheries sub-component of the World Bank supported Integrated Land and Water Management Project (ILWMP) in the Province of Mazandaran at the Caspian Sea. The resulting study provides a detailed review of the regional fisheries sector, and assesses the technical, economic, ecological and institutional validity of the proposed sub-component. It further determines appropriate investments, costs, and implementation arrangements with a focus on community participation.

Nov. 2002: GTZ has commissioned COFAD with a review of aquaculture in Germany and in projects of German bilateral co-operation and their compliance with/relevance for the FAO-Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries and the EU-Strategy for the Sustainable Development of the European Aquaculture. The review also aims to assess the international transfer potential of German aquaculture regulations and technologies, especially in the frame of technical assistance. The results will be presented and discussed during a workshop to be held in early 2004.

March 2002: COFAD has completed the final version of: "Back to Basics: Traditional Inland Fisheries Management and Enhancement Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa and their Potential for Development" (for GTZ). The study can be obtained from GTZ or downloaded here (PDF, 3.3 MB).

September 2002: COFAD has been commissioned to carry out the ex-post evaluation of the Community Initiative PESCA in Germany (1994 - 99). PESCA had been designed to enable the fisheries sector to succeed its transformation and help it bear the social and economic consequences, and to contribute to the diversification of the regions concerned through the development of job-creation activities.

June/July 2002: COFAD has won three tenders on evaluations of FIFG (Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance) programmes in Germany: ex-post evaluation 1994 - 99 for the regions not covered by Objective 1, mid-term evaluation, both in and outside of the Objective 1-regions. The FIFG is part of the EU structural funds and is the major source of finance for structural interventions in the fisheries sector.

Oct. 2001: COFAD provides the team leader of a mission to identify a regional fisheries project in Central America (Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador). For EU/Euronet.

Sept. 2001: Following the main implementation period, the Namibian-German "Fisheries Capacity Building Project" receives further German support under a three-year consolidation phase. Measures will be conducted in the following fields:

• Fisheries policy and planning
• Economic analyses
• Manpower Development
• Applied Ecosystem research

The German contribution will be carried out by the consulting team GOPA/COFAD, on behalf of GTZ.