Addressing fisheries and aquaculture in National Adaptation Plans

The FAO’s Addressing Fisheries and Aquaculture in National Adaptation Plans - Supplement to the UNFCCC NAP Technical Guidelines provides technical guidance on the integration of fisheries and aquaculture in the formulation and implementation of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and complements FAO’s Addressing agriculture, forestry and fisheries in National Adaptation Plans - Supplementary guidelines. It aims to draw the attention of policy makers and government officers responsible for NAP planning and processes generally, as well as fisheries and aquaculture officers at country level, specifically. It collates and analyses relevant information from fisheries and aquaculture to support the sector’s ability to take part in national climate change adaptation planning processes. The fisheries and aquaculture supplement to NAP guidance aims to:

• assist fisheries and aquaculture institutions to map their knowledge into the climate change world and language and articulate their needs;
• ensure that the economic and social values of fisheries and aquaculture in national development are captured adequately through the process of formulating and implementing NAPs;
• support the mainstreaming of fisheries and aquaculture in the NAP implementation;
• support adaptation planning within fisheries and aquaculture.

The guidance follows the principles of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate (UNFCCC) NAP Technical Guidelines i.e. recognising non-linearity in process, and allowing for flexibility and country-specific interpretation and adaptation of the guidance contents. It is anchored in the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF) in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines), and adopts the principles of the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF) and the Ecosystem Approach to Aquaculture (EAA) as overarching frameworks of reflection. The fisheries and aquaculture NAP supplement includes issues and methodologies designed specifically for the sector, along with examples from the field.

The guidelines are intended for national policymakers within ministries and institutions addressing the governance and management of the fisheries and aquaculture sector. They can provide support in linking these decision-makers’ work to climate change, enabling them to lead the recognition, promotion and inclusion of the sector in national adaptation planning. Other stakeholders can also make use of these guidelines and understand how to engage in and to initiate climate change adaptation at the subnational and local levels.