Non-traditional system of fisheries management involves management of fisheries by the state or its agents as opposed to the management by traditional authorities.
We shall be discussing issues such as the modern systems of fisheries management, similarities between traditional and modern methods of fisheries management, mixed system of fisheries management and the problem of enforcing laws.
Many objectives of the traditional and modern government-managed systems have similar objectives.
Modern System of Fisheries Management
Modern system of fisheries management includes those operated by the agents of the federal government where fisheries regulations are enforced by officers of the Fisheries Departments (Neiland et al. 1994a; Ovie & Raji, 2006).
States’ control of fisheries exist alongside common property and traditional management systems. Authority and control of fisheries resources lie with state, local and federal governments. The objective of fisheries management is sustainable exploitation or revenue generation.
The federal government controls the natural resources including fisheries with state and local governments having mandates to enforce licensing, catch and gear regulations, designation of fish sanctuaries, closed seasons and other management measures.
Traditional jurisdiction over fisheries resources retain some power within this framework
Similarities between Traditional and Modern Methods of Fisheries Management
Most traditional fisheries management systems contain objectives similar to those found in modern fisheries management.
The objective of sustainable resource use and resource conservation is a feature common to both traditional and modern fisheries management systems.
Equally common are objectives which reflect economic and social postulates: while aiming at optimizing resource utilization, they still contain elements of resource sharing.
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Mixed System of Fisheries Management
The leaders of traditional government (village and district heads) and the local government co-operate in the control and licensing of fishing areas.
The mixed system ensures that fishing sites are allocated without serious conflicts and that revenue is collected and passed to the leaders of both the traditional and local governments.
This arrangement of the “mixed system” is a good example of how local-level fishery management arrangements can be adapted to accommodate a new fishing system through the co-operation of both traditional and modern governments.
Problem of Laws Enforcement
Governments lack the logistics such as personnel, funds, field vehicles to enforce fisheries laws and regulations.
Lack of strong political commitment by government. There is need for co-ordination of activities of organizations involved in fisheries management.
The problem of low licensing fees. The primary objective of licensing vessels has been to generate revenue while the control of effort was secondary and ineffective (Tobor, 1991).
Wrong interpretation of decrees and other regulations by stakeholders.
Weak scientific data gives incomplete information and knowledge thereby producing wrong policies.
Absence of stakeholders’ input in policy formulation process. Most decisions are usually derived using top-bottom approach (Neiland etal., 2002, Nwosu etal.,2011).
Fisheries co-management was introduced on Kainji Lake through technical assistance to the Government of Nigeria (1993-2001) from German Ministry of Economic Co-operation and Development (GTZ) has not become widely practiced.
In summary, the non-traditional systems of fisheries management involve management of the resources by the government and its agencies at all levels. This often involves a top-bottom approach with the stakeholders playing minimal roles in management and decision making.
However, both traditional and non-traditional fisheries management systems have similar objectives though different approaches may be employed.
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