Toward Fisheries Refugia in Indonesia Coastal Water

Abstract

Fisheries Refugia is a new approach to fisheries management that integrates habitat and resource management, focusing on protecting critical life stages for sustainable use. This concept enriches fisheries management and supports biodiversity conservation with a different approach from MPAs that have been developed so far. The implementation of the fisheries refugia project in two priority sites starting in 2019 has provided valuable lessons-learned and experience in establishing refugia in Indonesia. The project provides a mechanism to build an integrated management system between habitat and fish resources by involving various stakeholders including local community participation. The results of the Refugia project in Indonesia strengthen fisheries and environmental management to achieve ecological and economic balance in the utilization of fisheries resources. For the effective replication of establishment refugia in Indonesia, there are several main factors that should be highlighted which cover ecology, economy, social and government aspects. The experience of the fisheries refugia project is significant to the GEF IW project and transboundary resource management. This experience represents the GEF IW project in establishing a management system that integrates the environment and fisheries, focusing on the critical life cycle of fishery resources in Indonesia.