Supporting fishing families
and ecotourism in the South Mediterranean
Manuela de los Rios reports on a CoastNet international project looking at sustainable
fishing and ecotourism in Northern Morocco.
E
arly this year, thanks to funding
from the Big Lottery
International Small Grants
Programme, a CoastNet team visited
Tetouan, in Northern Morocco,
approximately 50 miles from the
Strait of Gibraltar.
CoastNet’s interest in the African
coast of the Mediterranean has grown
out of the Encora Project, which was
extended in 2007 to include a
North African Encora Network. With
a view to bring further support to
coastal management in this region
CoastNet secured funding from the
Big Lottery International Small
Grants programme to gain a better
understanding of international efforts
in the region to promote sustainable
development. Morocco is one of the
case study areas that we investigated
to understand better the relationship
between international guidance, and
local delivery, and to identify
priorities for future activity.
14 The Edge Summer 2008
About Morocco
Morocco is the poorest country of
the Mediterranean, having the lowest
HDI (Human Development Index).
However, it is rich in coastal natural
resources, making it an increasingly
popular destination for tourists and
foreign investments in this sector. A
recent government scheme is aiming to
double tourist visits in 10 years which
would mean an increase from 5 to 10
million tourists by 2015.
Although there are local concerns
regarding the environmental pressure
from mass tourism, the priorities in a
country where 30 per cent of the
population are under 15 years old and
20 per cent are living under the poverty
threshold, put sustainable development
and climate change understandably at
the bottom of the agenda.
Although there is little coordination
between local coastal communities,
there is a strong interest in working
together to defend community rights. It
is within this perspective that CoastNet
met up with stakeholders in the country
to get a better idea of the current
situation and possible future actions.
CoastNet’s community project
Local actions with even a limited budget
can make a huge difference, and it
was with this approach in mind that
the CoastNet team interviewed
stakeholders belonging to national
research institutions, water companies,
women business organisations,
politicians, fishing associations and
tourism organisations. CoastNet agreed
that a key focus for future action would
be to support the artisanal fishing
communities whose way of life is
particularly vulnerable to the pressures
for change that they face. Confronted
with decreasing fish stocks, pressure for
mass tourism development, migration
from the villages to the cities, and loss of
natural and cultural heritage they need
help to adapt, and to capture some of the
benefits of change for their own
community.

The target of the project, Amsa
(pictured above), is a small fishing
village to the south of the city of
Tetouan. Its fishermen have
traditionally made their living from
the adjacent bay. However,
overfishing in the Mediterranean has
had an impact on the fish resources
within the bay, so that fishing no
longer provides for the community as
it did in the past. Their vision for the
community’s future is for small tourist
lodges, nature trails, and a cooperative
of fisherwives to run a fish restaurant
for tourists; for diversification into
low-impact mussel farming; for better
sanitation and water supplies for the
village; and for improved education
and training so that local people can
benefit from tourism jobs. CoastNet
has set out a programme to help them
achieve these goals. The programme
also includes support for local NGOs,
to help them to build their own
capacity to support this and similar
communities through these rapidly
changing times.
The project will span 30 months and
build local partnerships between two
environmental NGOs, a women’s
support association, schools, local
government, university and the
national fishing research centre. It will
also support fishermen and their
families by:
• Renovating traditional fishing gear
and facilities and promoting
sustainable fishing techniques.
• Diversifying income by installing
and building capacity to develop low
impact mussel aquaculture.
• Developing coastal related
ecotourism attractions and
educational resources.
• Strengthening a network of civil
society from the region of Tanger-
Tetouan and Northern Africa that
will promote similar good practice in
rural coastal communities.
At the time of going to press we await
the outcome of a bid for further Big
Lottery funding for a £330,000 package
of activities and investment in support
of these goals.
About ICZM in the
South Mediterranean
The importance of the Mediterranean as
an international sea, its situation
between three continents, and the
extent of threats to its environmental
quality from pollution and coastal
urbanisation have resulted in complex
institutional arrangements for
international support in the coastal
regions of North Africa and the Middle
East. An added complexity is in the
relationship between Arab and Western
systems and institutions of governance.
Here are the principle institutions:
• CEDARE (http://www.cedare.int) –
The Center for Environment
and Development for the Arab
Region and Europe – established in
1992 as an international inter-
governmental organisation with
diplomatic status. CEDARE cites
marine and coastal management,
environmental economics and
assessment, urbanisation, and
education and communication
as areas of special concern.
www.cedare.int/Main.aspx?code=284
• United Nations Environment
Program Mediterranean Action
Plan
www.unepmap.org/html/homeeng.asp
– Established as part of UNEPIs
regional seas programme. Its priorities
include protecting the Mediterranean
coasts “from the impact of
unrestrained development and its
effects on the marine environment”.
• METAP, the Mediterranean
Environmental Technical Assistance
Programme www.metap.org – Coastal
management is a priority.
• The Short and Medium-term
Priority Environmental Action
Programme
(SMAP) http://ec.europa.eu/environ
ment/smap/whatis.htm – a European
Union framework programme of
action for the protection of the
Mediterranean environment, within
the context of the Euro-Mediterranean
Partnership, adopted in 1997.
The Edge Summer 2008 15