The GoTFish project is designed to address the key barriers to sustainable transboundary fisheries management of the Gulf of Thailand (GoT), related to institutional, legal and administrative issues at regional and national levels, including lack of appropriate forum for GoT-wide multi-national dialogue for planning, monitoring and reporting to address current unsustainable practices in fisheries resource use and management and conservation of aquatic biodiversity; the lack of integration of socio-economic constraints (such as lack of or inadequate incentives, climate resilience and gender considerations into the planning and management of GoT Fisheries. The aim of the project is “Improved natural resource governance in the GoT through the implementation of the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) contributing to the broader, regional fisheries objectives of the South China Sea Strategic Action Programme (SCS-SAP)”. To achieve this, the GoTFish Project will work on four main components:

Component 1: Regional transboundary fisheries governance and management strengthened, will focus on the institutionalization of transboundary fisheries governance and management issues for more effective decision-making in the GoT. This will be achieved by supporting the creation of a regional mechanism that can set the protocols for information sharing related to shared stocks of priority species and/or fisheries, as well as setting up the governance structure and enhanced capacity for developing the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries regional and national plans.

Component 2: Alignment of incentive mechanisms, will work on improving the understanding of the roles of incentives (positive and negative) that can support sustainable and well-managed fisheries resources in the GoT, particularly market incentives such as the Fisheries Improvement Schemes for transboundary species, and behaviour change incentives.

Component 3: Ecological Corridor of Critical and Important Habitat for Aquatic Resources in the Gulf of Thailand (with a focus on Malaysia), will contribute to the conservation of globally significant biodiversity, identifying the existing ecological corridors in the GoT that are important both for biodiversity and fisheries. This component will be primarily executed in Malaysia (in particular, in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia) through the use of Biodiversity funding from GEF.

Component 4: Stakeholder engagement, communication, monitoring and evaluation, will contribute to IW focal area by facilitating project coordination and monitoring of project performance to achieve the expected outputs, enhancing the participation of stakeholders (with a strong focus on women’s involvement), and on creating, documenting, sharing and using of knowledge related to transboundary sustainable fisheries practices and aquatic ecological corridors.

During 2021-April 2022, the Project document was formulated based on the approved Project Identification Form (PIF). During the GEF Project Preparation Grant (PPG) phase, a series of national and regional consultations and workshops were conducted with the Gulf of Thailand Countries namely: Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Viet Nam and and relevant stakeholder. Once the Project endorses, the project will be executed by SEAFDEC, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) and University of Queensland (UQ) and Department of Fisheries Malaysia, where SEAFDEC will execute the Component 1 and 4. The Project document was submitted to GEF in May 2022 and it is on the process of the consideration by the GEF Council. It is expected to be commenced the Project in January 2023.

The GoT covers an area of 391,665km2 and is bounded by Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Viet Nam. The natural resource use of the GoT LME and the neighboring South China Sea LME provides a wide variety of additional marine-based cultural and provisioning ecosystem services, such as food security, nutrition and livelihoods, critical to the GoT’s coastal populations as well as the export economies of its neighboring countries.

FAO, therefore, developed the Project Identification Form (PIF), title “Promoting the blue economy and strengthening fisheries governance of the Gulf of Thailand through the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (GoTFish Project)”, in consultation with various stakeholder and submitted to Global Environment Facilities (GEF) in 2020. The GoTFish Project was also proposed as SEAFDEC Pipeline Project in the 43rd Meeting of the SEAFDEC Project Committee in 2020.

During the Project Identification Form (PIF) development, it was agreed by key stakeholders that to reverse the environmental degradation of the Gulf of Thailand and its loss of resilience and sustainability, particularly related to fisheries resources, the project should address key barriers related to:

• Institutional, legal and administrative issues, such as the lack of an appropriate “platform” or “forum” for region-wide multi-stakeholder dialogue to serve as decision-making bodies for the development, implementation and monitoring of regional fisheries management plans and/or action plans based on key issues. Discussions for the agreement on the type of regional mechanism will be addressed within Project Outcome 1.1;
• Socio-economic and capacity barriers, through the use of an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries that takes into consideration the human, ecological and governance dimension of fisheries, focusing on enhancing resilience and the capacity to implement measures and changes by different actors (community, private sector, government, etc.) at different levels (local, national, regional, global), which will be addressed as part of Project Outcome 1.2.;
• Market and traceability barriers: through a better engagement with the private sector and the role that social and community-based incentives can play to shift that behaviour towards a sustainable use of the fisheries resources, which will be addressed as part of Project Outcome 2.1. The project has also mobilized Biodiversity Funds in Malaysia from their own STAR allocation and under Component 3, the project will work on addressing barriers related to MPA and ecosystem connectivity (not only fisheries, but also other important, vulnerable and threatened migratory species.
• Stakeholder Engagement (including Gender), Communications and M&E: The Component 4 of the project will focus on Stakeholder engagement (including gender analysis to ensure the full participation of women in the project), as well as effective communication and monitoring and evaluation.

In the PIF, there is a detailed description of the baseline scenario and associated baseline projects. The project will focus on promoting regional cooperation (through the existing mechanisms such as APFIC, SEAFDEC, COBSEA, PEMSEA), as well as within the initiatives ongoing in these four (4) Gulf of Thailand countries (e.g. CAPFISH program in Cambodia, Malaysia’s work on MPAs, Thailand’s NPOA-IUU, Viet Nam’s Master Plan on Fisheries Development, etc.) and other regional and international efforts (FAO-IPOA, VGSSF, SEAFDEC regional projects (e.g. Fisheries Refugia, etc.) and regional instruments (SEAFDEC Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, etc.), as well as the Regional Plans of Actions (RPOA-Neritic Tuna, RPOA- Capacity, RPOA-IUU), and other relevant works, from NGOs and CSOs, academia, and the private sector (specially under Component 2), and other biodiversity and MPA related work (specially under Component 3).

Working with stakeholders, the project will work on addressing the priorities identified in the Programme Committees of SEAFDEC, the SEAFDEC Council and ASAEAN priority areas/targets for fisheries. In particular, the project will focus on:

• Building regional cooperation around fishery management and combating IUU fishing, throughout the project, and particularly under Outcome 1.1, with work directed for the restoration of fisheries resources and marine biodiversity ecosystem services and strengthening regional transboundary governance and cooperation of GoT fisheries.
• Tackling improved management and use of Ecosystem approach, throughout the project and particularly under Outcome 1.2, with the development and implementation of the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) management plans in the Gulf of Thailand enhances the resilience against climate change and manages fishing effort of fisheries stakeholders (women and men) (related to SAP Fisheries Objective 1). This Outcome 1.2 will also focus on Strengthening capacity for management as well as assessment of fisheries.
• Addressing environmental aspects of fisheries and build wider cooperation across ministries of environment, throughout the project and through Outcome 3.1, focused on the integration of habitat and biodiversity conservation considerations in the management of fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand through deeper understanding of the ecological transboundary corridors existing in the Gulf of Thailand, leading to enhanced resilience of vulnerable aquatic species and those important for regional food security and sovereignty, (related to SAP-Fisheries Objective 1).
• Support small scale fisheries and promote the implementation of the FAO Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication throughout the project and particularly in the development of knowledge tools under Component 4 of the project.
• Complementing the FAO programmes of support and FAO cooperation with SEAFDEC, promoting FAO and SEAFDEC policy documents, such as
  • SEAFDEC Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, which focuses attention on the cultural needs of the region, the tropical multispecies nature of fisheries and the need for management that reflects regional needs. This reflects regional requirements for full utilization of catches as a mechanism for resolving discards and bycatch whilst supplying marine protein to coastal communities and creating jobs.
  • SEAFDEC regional initiatives on combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in Southeast Asia and optimizing energy use in fisheries in the Southeast Asian region through fishing vessels energy audits. The project on the Promotion of Sustainable Fisheries and IUU Fishing-related Countermeasures in Southeast Asia, which is being implemented by SEAFDEC with funding support from the Japanese Trust Fund (JTF), includes the Promotion of Regional Database for Fishing Vessels Records, and Port State Measures implementation in Southeast Asia. An EAFM training program is also being sustained through SEAFDEC in collaboration with other partners. GoTFish will build on the process initiated by relevant SEAFDEC JTF projects to address the issue to combat IUU fishing.
  • SEAFDEC’s Gulf of Thailand Sub-regional platform, which has been facilitated by the SEAFDEC-Sweden project, initiated the first attempts to regional fisheries collaboration in key species in the Gulf of Thailand, documenting information related to the fisheries and migratory patterns of key species with the aim of facilitating development of joint management plans in the GoT, and specific plan of actions for the selected species. The
    GoTFish project will build on these processes, particularly the working groups/task forces initiated by the SEAFDEC-Sweden project.
  • GoTFish will promote and provide support for the implementation of the Regional Plans of Actions, such as the RPOA-Neritic Tuna, RPOA-Capacity, and RPOA-IUU.
  • The implementation of FAO’s Strategic Objectives and regional priority areas of work related to Climate Change and sustainable natural resource management, One-Health and Blue Growth in fisheries, the FAO’s Committee on Fisheries (COFI), of which all GoT participating countries are members, implements a broad range of binding and voluntary instruments such as the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (CCRF) and International Plans of Action (IPOAs). GoTFish will facilitate the promotion of these policies, and will provide guidance on how to address IUU fishing and other transboundary fisheries management issues, while GoTFish will provide lessons learned based on experience of putting those instruments into practice. 

Contributions to the SDGs

• Expected outcomes of the proposed project are fully consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and will contribute to a range of important socio-economic and environmental SDG targets, especially SDG 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources, and its targets 1-5: by 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution; by 2020, sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems to avoid significant adverse impacts, including by strengthening their resilience, and take action for their restoration in order to achieve healthy and productive oceans; minimize and address the impacts of ocean acidification, including through enhanced scientific cooperation at all levels; by 2020, effectively regulate harvesting and end overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and destructive fishing practices and implement science-based management plans, in order to restore fish stocks in the shortest time feasible, at least to levels that can produce maximum sustainable yield as determined by their biological characteristics; and by 2020, conserve at least 10 percent of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on the best available scientific information.

Contribution to the ASEAN-SEAFDEC Resolution and Plan of Action on Sustainable Fisheries for Food Security for the ASEAN Region Towards 2030

The project will directly contribute to the Resolution and Plan of Action on Sustainable Fisheries for Food Security for the ASEAN Region Towards 2030, including the support to priority actions related to A. Planning and Information; B. Fisheries Management, and F. Regional and International Policy Formulation.

The Component 4 activity which is Stakeholder engagement, communication, monitoring and evaluation which executing by SEAFDEC will focus on Stakeholder engagement including gender analysis to ensure the full participation of women in the project.

4.1 Logical Framework 

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Fisheries resources and marine biodiversity ecosystem services are restored through strengthened regional transboundary governance and cooperation of GoT fisheries, building their resilience through improved habitat and fisheries management (SCS-SAP Fisheries Objective 11)

Updated and regionally coherent fisheries policies across the GoT countries and strengthened national legal frameworks

Activity 1.1.1a: Review of the current legal frameworks and policies across the four GoTFish countries to identify similarities and differences.

Activity 1.1.1b: Provide a sub-regional platform to consider the review and identify areas for better regional consistency

Established regional stakeholder working groups for improved transboundary fisheries management and addressing key regional issues

Activity 1.1.2a: Undertake a brief review of the objectives and mode of operations of past and present working groups that have formed under different projects and initiatives

Activity 1.1.2b: Establish regional stakeholder working groups based on the results of the review and the agreed priority issues (see 1.1.4) to provide for stakeholders with common concerns to come together and share best practices and lessons learnt in order to develop targeted and time-bound activities to address priority fisheries issues in the GoT.

Development and implementation of regional and
national action plans to address common fisheries issues

Activity 1.1.3a: Provide an up-to-date assessment of the content and progress in implementation of existing Regional Action Plans (RAPs), Regional Plans of Action (RPOAs), particularly actions under the transboundary Indo-Pacific mackerel plan that was developed by GoT countries.

Activity 1.1.3b: Assist GoT countries implement the existing RPOAs by providing a forum for sub-regional implementation arrangements between GoTFish States that demonstrate national commitments to actions (e.g. national budgets committed to implement the plans). This could involve the development of NPOAs, where appropriate or implementation through national EAFM plans.

Agreed mechanism for a regional
approach to transboundary fisheries management in the Gulf
of Thailand

Activity 1.1.4: Through sub-regional workshops for stakeholders, identify and confirm 3 to 4 priority transboundary fisheries and 3 to 4 priority cross-cutting issues as input into the development and implementation of sub-regional and national EAFM plan(s). These issues need to be linked to the integration of the connectivity and biodiversity considerations considered under Component 3.

Prioritization of regional, sub-
regional and national transboundary related issues for fisheries management and related biodiversity and environmental issues.

Activity 1.1.5a: Review the costs and mode of operation of regional fisheries bodies (RFBs) in other similar large marine ecosystems of the world.

Activity 1.1.5b: Carry out a cost/benefit analysis and examine opportunities and constraints to a transboundary and cooperative fisheries management approach in the GoT. Agree and implement at least one regional mechanism that involves sharing data and information and reviewing progress in fisheries management. The
mechanism/arrangements to include involvement of Inter-Ministry Committees/ National Level Committees

Development and implementation of Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries management (EAFM) plans in the Gulf of Thailand enhances the resilience against climate change and manages fishing effort of fisheries stakeholders (women and men) (related to SCS-SAP Fisheries Objective 1)

Stakeholder capacity to develop EAFM plans is strengthened, taking into consideration the different needs of women and men.

Activity 1.2.1a: Develop gender-sensitive capacity building opportunities for key stakeholders to participate fully in the development and implementation of sub-regional and national plans. These could include gender-specific capacity development actions, supporting networks, trainings, implementing gear and post-harvest technologies, where appropriate to EAFM, and practices, awareness raising, and adaptive management for effective decision-making, linking with Outcome 1.1.

Strengthened national fisheries
management plans are
implemented through the EAF
approach.

Activity 1.2.2a: Provide a platform to share experiences in developing and implementing national EAFM plans and assist countries in (i) strengthening the plans and (ii) monitoring and evaluating progress in implementing these plans by setting up an adaptive management scheme that includes biennial reviews and improvement advice. Assist SW Viet Nam update its Trawl Fisheries FMP to be more EAF-based in its approach.

Activity 1.2.2b: Provide an up-to-date assessment of the status of the GoT fishery resources, habitats, ETPs and ecosystem structure and function, and capacity development on its use by GoT countries, informed by EwE modelling.

EAFM plan(s) developed,
addressing priority risks and
opportunities to human well-
being, ecosystem integrity and
governance (including the
components 2 and 3) including
the implications of climate
change on GoT countries’
fisheries

Activity 1.2.3a: Develop a sub-regional EAFM plans based on transboundary priority risks and opportunities to human wellbeing and ecosystem integrity using the best available knowledge on the biological and ecological dimensions of key transboundary GoT fisheries, as well as the human and governance dimensions for the sectors and communities that depend on them. Knowledge generated under Component 3, focused on biodiversity connectivity and effectiveness of conservation areas, will be integrated into these EAFM plans.

Activity 1.2.3b: Collate relevant fisheries data in a sub-regional fisheries information system.

Activity 1.2.3c: Initiate implementation the EAFM plans based on national commitments (e.g. national budgets committed to the plan).

Activity 1.2.3d: Contribute to broader planning frameworks and regional marine spatial planning (MSP) such as that developed by the SCS-SAP project, by facilitating the integration of fisheries consideration within the planning of other maritime sectors (such as tourism, oil and gas, transport, etc.) and vice-versa. In particular
make spatial data developed during EAFM planning, including ecological corridors and transboundary stocks to any appropriate MSP activity in the GoT sub-region.

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Establishment of a market and behavior incentive mechanism which reduces ecosystem stress from fishing, enhances the uptake of good practices supporting fisheries management and supports the transition to climate-resilient fisheries (integrating gender considerations and the different needs of women and men along the fishery value chain) (related to SCS-SAP Fisheries Objective 3).

Identification of mechanisms and
stakeholder platforms to support
incentives for sustainable and
well-managed GoT fisheries
value chains, including those
linked to fishmeal for feeds.

Activity 2.1.1a.: Carry out grounded baseline analyses of at least two supply chains using raw material from key fisheries within the GoT.

Activity 2.1.1b: Gauge interest of key stakeholder groups to develop market incentives through newly created or already existing improvement frameworks that utilize pre-competitive collaborations and/or public-private alliances.

Activity 2.1.1c: Prepare a plan to develop or improve/refine at least two market incentive mechanisms that will receive support from the project.

Market and other innovative incentive mechanisms
implemented to enhance
sustainable fisheries value chains
aimed to promote sustainable
sourcing of fish and aquatic
products, as well as to transition
to low impact fishing practices.

Activity 2.1.2a: Develop or refine at least two new or existing market incentive mechanisms to enhance sustainable fisheries value chains that serve to promote environmental and social improvements, including gender equity.

Activity 2.1.2b: Promote uptake by key supply chains of project supported market incentive mechanisms to engage in sustainable sourcing of fish and aquatic products.

Activity 2.1.2c: Support at least one Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) to meet the requirements of improvement frameworks and incentive mechanisms, so that producers transition to low-impact fishing practices.

Activity 2.1.2d: Support engaged regional supply chains in two-way communications with markets (e.g., communicating the attributes of project supported market incentive tools and improvement frameworks, connecting engaged supply chains with interested buyers or promoting peer-to-peer learning among supply chain actors).

Mapping of aquatic ecological
corridors in the Gulf of Thailand

Activity 3.1.1a: Mapping and archiving of regional ecological and biodiversity assets throughout major marine areas of GoT.

Activity 3.1.1b: Analysis and potential modelling of fish larval dispersion.

Activity 3.1.1c: Zoning of core conservation areas (both terrestrial and marine).

Activity 3.1.1d: Mapping of economic activity areas (e.g., fishing zones, tourism, and local community uses).

Development of recommendations/guidelines for
the alignment of key biodiversity
considerations into national,
transboundary and/or regional
fisheries management plans and
action plans.

Activity 3.1.2: Development of national guidelines with regards to managing biodiversity and fisheries in the seascape.

Creation of an interim Gulf of
Thailand sub-regional technical
discussion platform to address
integration of fisheries and
aquatic biodiversity.

Activity 3.1.3: National level consultations to form an interim Gulf of Thailand sub-regional technical discussion platform.

Identification of ecological critical and corridors important habitat for aquatic resources in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia with spatial maps and information available identification of management and protection measures including protected areas (PAs).

Activity 3.2.1: Implementation of the seascape approach in managing marine ecological corridors throughout the East Coast Peninsular Malaysia at the state level.

Activity 3.2.2: Identify important biodiversity areas for gazettement as protected areas and preparation of respective management plans.

Participatory monitoring system
established to reduce fishing and
other pressures on marine
biodiversity in conservation
areas.

Activity 3.3.1a: Establishment of a participatory monitoring system for the management of biodiversity and data collection.

Map priority areas to improve
resilience of ecosystem
components including
identification of existing threats
and vulnerabilities (including
climate change and other natural
and human hazards).

Activity 3.3.2.a: Determine priority areas based on habitat/ ecosystem resilience Considerations.

Activity 3.3.2b: Prepare list of recommendations for priority actions in these areas.

Development of participatory
ecosystem resilience plans within
and beyond Marine Managed
Areas, that address the needs of
the ecological corridors.

Activity 3.3.3a: Incorporate resilience-based management planning and resilience assessment methodology into marine spatial planning system/guideline.

Activity 3.3.3b: Develop resilience strategy to provide guidance on managing marine resources across East Coast Peninsular Malaysia.

Activity 3.3.3c: Capacity building on resilience principles among multiple.

fficient knowledge management and targeted communication, improves the understanding amongst stakeholders of ecosystem and fishery linkages in the Gulf of Thailand (related to SCS-SAP Fisheries Objective 2).

GoT project monitoring system
established and implemented.
(including mid-term and final
evaluations).

Activity 4.1.1a: Develop the M&E tracking system for indicators under components 1, 2 and 3 (both at regional and national levels monitoring).

Activity 4.1.1b: Regular monitoring of output level indicators.

Activity 4.1.1c: Mid Term Review (including assessment against output level and GEF Core Indicators).

Activity 4.1.1d: Final Evaluation (including assessment against output level and GEF Core indicators).

Activity 4.1.1e: Annual PSC meetings (including the development of the project exit strategy by the end of the project).

Activity 4.1.1f: Revision of the Environmental and Social Safeguards at the project Midterm.

GoT knowledge management
strategy and communication
strategy established and
implemented.

Activity 4.1.2a: Develop the knowledge management strategy for sharing knowledge and lessons learned related to the GoTFish components.

Activity 4.1.2b: Develop the communication strategy for the GotFish.

Activity 4.1.2c: Develop and maintain the GoTFish Project Website.

Activity 4.1.2.d: Develop 10 lessons learned knowledge materials.

Participation in the activities of
the IW Learn Project.

Activity 4.1.3a: Facilitate participation of project stakeholders to the IW Learn annual meetings (budget allocated is 1 % of the IW budget).

Activity 4.1.3b: share lessons learned documented in Output 4.1.2 to the IW Learn website.

GoTFish gender and stakeholder engagement strategy implemented.

Activity 4.2.1a: Revise and implement the GoTFish Gender Strategy, documenting lessons learned.

Activity 4.2.1b: Revise and implement the GoTFish Stakeholder engagement strategy of the GoTFish.