What is an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM)?
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization defines EAFM as “ an approach to fisheries management and development that strives to balance diverse societal objectives by taking into account the knowledge and uncertainties about biotic, abiotic, and human components of ecosystems and their interactions and applying an integrated approach to fisheries within ecologically meaningful boundaries.” The aim of EAFM is to plan, develop and manage fisheries in a manner that addresses the multiple needs and desires of societies, without jeopardizing the options for future generations to benefit from the full range of goods and services provided by marine ecosystems.

Why is it important to apply EAFM in the Coral Triangle?
EAFM recognizes the importance of the human dimensions to fisheries management and views coastal communities and fishers as critical parts of the ecosystem with food security, livelihood, and economic development interests linked to effective fisheries management. EAFM is a key tool used to address common transboundary policy and regulatory concerns among the Coral Triangle countries such as over-fishing; illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing; live reef fish trade; and by-catch of protected and endangered species.

How is the US CTI Support Program improving the implementation of EAFM in the Coral Triangle?
The US Government, through the US CTI Support Program, is applying EAFM to improve the governance of regional and national fisheries in the Coral Triangle. The program supports the implementation of EAFM through the following activities at the regional, national and site-level scale across the Coral Triangle.

The US CTI Support Program applies an integrated approach across the major CTI thematic areas to achieve catalytic results, focusing activities at specific priority geographic sites and linking them across the region through shared learning networks and regional exchanges to advance regional policies and strengthen capacity throughout the Coral Triangle region.

Regional

• Strengthens fisheries governance through EAFM by providing technical assistance to the Coral Triangle countries in the establishment of a regional framework and a 10-year roadmap to implement EAFM across the region.
• Supports the development of a multi-lateral live reef fish trade agreement among the Coral Triangle countries. The agreement will provide a foundation for managing the increasing impacts of the live reef fish trade in the Coral Triangle, much of which impacts endangered or threatened species.
• Development of a comprehensive and integrated toolkit, case studies and training curricula for EAFM, marine protected areas and climate change adaptation.

National

• Provides technical assistance to fisheries agencies in each Coral Triangle country to enable them to develop their own national EAFM operational guidelines that will inform national legislative frameworks and policies.
• Supports the review and analysis of existing national laws on EAFM and legal frameworks against illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.
• Supports and mentors national-level EAFM policy “champions” to build constituencies for national EAFM legislation, policy and/or operational guidelines.

Site-Level

• Implements EAFM in all of its 13 priority sites and works with local governments and stakeholders to integrate marine protected areas and climate change adaptation actions to support EAFM in at least one site per country.
• Collaborates with local governments, community groups, and other stakeholders to catalyze public-private partnerships and initiatives with the goal of replicating these success stories across the region, as appropriate to local contexts.