Community Based Fisheries Management as the future fisheries management option for small-scale fisheries of Bangladesh

Research PaperFisheries resource is a great natural asset to this planet and ensuring the responsible use of these resources can enrich the lives of its people. However, global fishery resources are under high and mounting pressure which is severe, particularly in the developing countries. Until recently, traditional fisheries management has failed to prevent over-exploitation and degradation and often ignored the socio economic aspects in the case of small-scale fisheries. Moreover, many developing countries face major constraints in capacity and the ability to promote implementation of long-term sustainable policies. International concern about people and their resources has significantly impacted thinking about how fisheries should be managed and the need for greater responsibility by fishers and managers is becoming more frequently heard. Bangladesh, a reverine developing country of South East Asia where more than 70% of the population lives in flood plain and coastal situations, fisheries resources suffer from severe over-exploitation so resource protection is important in sustaining the contribution of aquatic products to food security and livelihoods for the people. This situation urgently requires effective management measures which this can be best achieved by involving all user groups and the national fisheries agency, as the leader of the managers, for long term success oriented ultimately towards societal well-being, and based upon economic and resource sustainability. The purpose of this paper is to provide background information on the fisheries of Bangladesh and to justify the implementation of community-based fisheries management (CBFM) as vital if sustainable solutions are to be found