A total of 19 women fishers and representatives from the Fisheries Service of Biak Regency, Kaimana Regency, Wondama Bay Regency, Southeast Maluku Regency, Eastern Seram Regency, and Ambon City successfully participated in the Empowerment and Implementation of the Community-Based Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (CB EAFM) for Fisherwomen.

The opening ceremony was attended by Siti Hamdiyah from BHKLN KKP, Adipati Rahmat as the Project Manager of GEF-6, J. Abrahamsz as the Head of LC EAFM from Pattimura University, Heike Lingertat as the Lead Specialist from WWF GEF Agency, and Adrianne Mc Keehan as the Safeguard Specialist from WWF GEF Agency. The event also included participants from CFI Indonesia champions and fisheries services’ representatives from seven regencies and cities in Papua, West Papua, and Maluku Provinces.

“This Community-Based EAFM technical guidance aligns well with the goals of the CFI Indonesia project. In addition to supporting household economies through diversification efforts such as fish product processing and ecoprint batik, it also involves women in understanding EAFM,” stated Siti Hamdiyah from BHKLN KKP.

The main goal of this activity is to strengthen the capacity of fisherwomen to manage fishery resources in a sustainable and gender-responsive manner. It covered essential topics related to sustainable fisheries management, focusing on the empowerment of women fishers in ecosystem-based fisheries businesses. The main topics of this technical guidance included the principles of Gender-Based Management; gender-based EAFM for sustainable fisheries; business management, marketing, and product development; and growth mindset and mental resilience of women/fishers’ wives in supporting EAFM practices.

To meet the needs of this activity, several experienced speakers in the fields of EAFM and community empowerment were invited. These experts came from the LC EAFM of Pattimura University (Unpatti), namely: Dr. J. Abrahamsz, S.Pi., M.Si.; Dr. Th. P. Th. Rampisela, S.Psi., M.Ed.; Frederik W. Ayal, S.Pi., M.Si.; and M. M. Makailipessy, S.Pi., M.Si.

Abrahamsz, Head of LC EAFM Unpatti, expressed hope that the network formed during this event would continue to serve as a platform for discussion and collaboration in addressing various challenges in the business development of women fisher groups. “This connectivity is expected to have a sustainable positive impact on improving the welfare and competitiveness of women fishers in Indonesia’s coastal areas,” said Abrahamsz.

The event was well received by the participants and is expected to make a significant contribution to the development of gender-based sustainable fisheries in Indonesia.

This program is part of the GEF (Global Environment Facility) CFI Indonesia project “The Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) in Eastern Indonesia (Fisheries Management Area - FMA 715, 717 & 718)”.