Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy of The Gambia.

The Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy is a national policy with a cross-sectoral approach. The overall goal of this Policy is to achieve ecologically and economically sustainable fisheries that ensures food and nutrition security for the population in a thriving and stable society.
This Policy lays down strategies to ensure that all people at all times have both physical and economic access to fish products to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. Food security will be ensured through the increase in fish production from capture fisheries and aquaculture, protection of fish stocks, sustainable marine and inland fisheries, reduced post-harvest losses and by-catch, increased trade of aquatic and fish products to meet the local demands, and the development of fisheries infrastructure.
Small-scale fisheries will be promoted in the formal economy and its contribution will be strengthened to poverty alleviation, food and nutrition security and socio-economic benefits of fishing communities. The capacities of fishers' organizations and other stakeholders will be enhanced for the promotion of good explicit participatory fisheries governance, sustainable development and responsible use of fisheries and aquaculture resources. Aquaculture subsector will be promoted to create employment in urban and rural areas. The access to land and water and other productive resources for fisheries and aquaculture investments will be improved for all stakeholders, including women and youth.
Institutional framework will be strengthened to ensure healthy ecological systems, maximize wealth-creation in fisheries and aquaculture, and promote equitable resource allocation at all levels of the sector for enhanced social stability. Data collection on stock size, capacity, harvest cost, catch size, revenue and ecosystem health will be strengthened to conduct sound fisheries research. Commercial and non-commercial aquaculture will be developed with a value chain approach that links input supply to production, consumption and environmental safety. In order to enhance production and productivity, reduce post -harvest losses, improve the quality of products, product development and increase exports, the fisheries infrastructure will be developed and the adoption of appropriate technologies will be encouraged. Moreover, the handling and processing of fish and fishery products will be improved to conform to international standards for improved market access. Appropriate certification process will be developed for fish products for export in conformity with the international standards. The Food Safety Authority and National Notification Authority will be empowered to ensure safety of fish products and give early warnings. Sustainable development and management of industrial fisheries will be ensured through the active participation in international conventions and RFMO meetings, access to high seas and capacity building in the field of high seas fisheries. The sub-regional, regional and international cooperation will be strengthened with respect to the management of fisheries resources with particular reference to shared stocks. Capacity building will be enhanced in the fisheries and aquaculture sector to ensure the sustainable resource development and management based on contemporary and emerging trends with the full participation of the range of stakeholders.
A strategy and action plan will be developed for integrating disaster risk management and climate change adaptation into fisheries and aquaculture. Human and institutional capacity building will be strengthened about climate adaptation and disaster risk management including infectious disease outbreak. In order to alleviate food supply instability due to the risks and disasters, early warning systems will be established and food storage systems will be improved.