Stakeholder in the project Coastal Fisheries Initiative in West Africa, abbreviated IPC-AO, Inades-Formation has begun since Monday, November 7, 2022 the second phase of training of fishermen and fishmongers organizations in Côte d’Ivoire.
The first phase of training took place from October 3 to 12, 2022 in Sassandra and from October 17 to 22 in Locodjro/Abidjan. It has helped build the capacity of 181 artisanal fisheries actors , including 111 (78 women and 33 men) from 9 associations and 1 cooperative in Sassandra and 70 actors(41 women and 29 men) from 4 cooperatives and 1 association in Locodjro.
The trainings focused on group entrepreneurship, financial education and savings and loan group management.
Through the training on Collective Entrepreneurship, participants have better (i) understood the challenges of the different links of the artisanal fisheries value chains and how to address these challenges; (ii) learned how to develop their entrepreneurial spirit; (iii) how to develop self-managed services, develop investment plans and monitor performance in the operation of their cooperatives; (iv) how to identify and assess their funding needs and (v) how to work with potential funders.
The module on the creation and management of a savings and credit group (GEC) aimed to strengthen their capacities on how to set up a savings and credit system and mutual aid solidarity and be able to mitigate their financial difficulties.
The financial skills module consisted of enabling them to (i) transcribe the summary of economic operations (purchases, sales …) ; (ii) control their various money movements, (iii) calculate the result of their activity and (iv) make good management decisions.
The second phase of the training will last from November 7 to 16 in Sassandra and from .05. to December 10 in Locodjro will focus on the following modules: Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF), Gender Equality and Women’s Leadership, Life in Cooperatives or Pre-Cooperative Groups and Mutualization Arrangements.
The FAO-funded West African Coastal Fisheries Initiative (WCFI) is a project aimed at preserving marine resources and ensuring that coastal fisheries can continue to play their crucial role in society, thus contributing to food security and economic and social development. IPC-AO provides practical support to coastal fisheries in three (3) West African countries, namely Cape Verde, Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire.
These trainings aim at equipping the actors of the artisanal fishing for a better organization of the sector and a responsible fishing in Côte d’Ivoire.
Achi Marcelle & Kouamé Alphonse, General Secretariat
