SSF tenure rights and access to fishing resources must be protected; SSF women and men must participate effectively in the decisions that affect them.

• Grant small-scale fishers exclusive access rights to coastal fisheries, by closing inshore areas to industrial fishing and other industrial activity and by protecting title, tenure, access, and resource rights;

• Ensure free, prior and informed consent for any new ocean use or activity, including for conservation purposes and marine protected areas;

• Implement co-management systems for 100% of all coastal areas, by putting in place specific legal frameworks that clearly define the roles and responsibilities of the authorities and fishers and by providing the appropriate support for fishers to engage (including for participatory surveillance, closed fishing seasons, etc); and

• Guarantee sufficient financial means in annual national budgets to support these co-management systems.

The negative impacts of more powerful blue economy sea and land-based sectors, - such as offshore energy production, deep-sea mining, industrial fishing, tourism, fishmeal factories, logging-, jeopardise the future of coastal communities. The precautionary approach and transparency and effective participation of SSF should guide any new ocean use.

• Do not allow or support any new ocean use that may negatively impact ecosystems and the communities that depend on them for their livelihoods; and make sure that free, prior, informed consent is applied;

• Develop, with the utmost transparency and with the participation of affected coastal communities, mechanisms for (1) independent social and environmental impact assessments, (2) Consultation which allows for informed and active participation of affected fishing communities, (3) Conflict resolution between users of maritime spaces, and (4) Judicial and administrative grievance redress; and

• Demonstrate adequate provision in national budgets for enforcement of environmental regulation, including the implementation of international and regional laws and conventions, before any new ocean use is allowed.

Political will is needed to urgently reform fisheries policies and practices that will ensure healthy fishing communities and benefit national economies.

• As SSF are neglected in official statistics, and particularly women, improve gender sensitive data collection and dissemination of information of the sector, so that their contributions to food security, livelihoods, sustainable use of the ocean are more visible;

• Due to a lack of information available, the inland fisheries sector is poorly recognised in national fisheries policies. There is a need to better document inland fisheries, its contributions and the challenges it faces, so that it can be recognised and supported at a national and international level;

• Publish, to the minimum standards of the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI), all relevant information, including legislation, fishing authorisations, data on performance and the rationale for management regulations; and

• Make public all information about other ocean, coastal sea and land based industrial projects, including texts of authorisations, permits and approvals, and information on foreign aid projects and new forms of financing for ocean conservation, including blue bonds and debt-for-nature-swaps.

SSF are the first to suffer the impacts of climate change and other external shocks, and this affects the future for youth in communities to make a living from fishing. Fisheries governance must include Disaster Risk Reduction and emergency response, access to social rights, such as education, health and social security, and guarantee decent fishery dependent livelihoods for youth.

• Develop, with fishing communities, specific policies and plans for climate change adaptation and mitigation, including restorative measures to ensure healthy marine ecosystems, and measures for disaster risk reduction and emergency response;

• Support initiatives that improve the communities’ resilience, particularly facing resource scarcity, helping them reduce post-harvest losses or developing supply alternatives, with the objective of offering long term decent livelihoods prospects to youth; and

• Ensure social rights for SSF, such as access to social security, health, education, safety at sea in a way that will improve the attractivity of the sector for youth.