Abstract

In May 2018 the Ministerial Council of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) which comprises seven-teen members approved the entry into force of the Protocol on securing sustainable small-scale fisheries for Caribbean Community fisherfolk and societies. Its title states the overall objective of this first protocol to the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy (CCCFP). The intention of the protocol is to incorporate the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines) into the CCCFP. This success was the outcome of a combined effort from academic, private sector, non-governmental and inter-governmental collaboration in Caribbean fisheries. However, entry into force means little, and achieves even less, without the willingness and ability, leadership and capacity, to put the protocol into practice. Therein lies the rub. There is, within CRFM (meaning the member states and all of the governance bodies and arrangements), a substantial implementation gap. Most conspicuous, is the absence of functional fisheries management plans into which an instrument such as the protocol could easily be embedded. In addition, partly because there are few functional plans, it is challenging to pursue and impos-sible to institutionalise participatory monitoring and evaluation, learning and adaptive management. Putting the protocol into practice provides a new opportunity to address these weaknesses. Suggestions are provided for doing so in a manner that develops capacities and institutions while integrating the interests of diverse stakeholders in sustainable fisheries.

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