Impact analysis of a rolling fund for artisanal fishing in Morocco

Implementation

Al-Hoceima National Park, Morocco

July 2019 – August 2019

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Financing

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Project background

Al-Hoceima National Park, Morocco

Due to its challenging accessibility, the marine portion of Morocco’s Al-Hoceima reserve is regarded as one of the last remaining habitats of the Mediterranean’s original biodiversity.

Approximately 3,000 fishers were directly employed by fishing in 2019, making it the region’s most important economic activity. Morocco outlawed the use of drift gillnets in 2010, making a large portion of the equipment unlawful. To comply with the law, fishers had to modify their methods.

Project background

A revolving fund for more sustainable fishing

In November 2017, the Moroccan NGO AGIR (Association de Gestion Intégrée des Ressources) received funding from the MAVA Foundation to establish a fund that will enable small-scale fishers to purchase new fishing equipment to replace their drift gillnets.

The fund made it possible for fishers to borrow money to upgrade their gear, moving from gillnets to longlines and from longlines to creels. The fund encouraged fishermen to buy natural fiber creels produced by a women’s cooperative in the area. The fund is revolving because the money that was originally loaned could be used to support new small-scale fishermen after it was paid back.

BlueSeeds assessed the efficiency, sustainability and replicability of the rolling fund deployed in Al-Hoceima to foster more sustainable fishing.

Our achievements

The impact analysis conducted by BlueSeeds

The AGIR association and the MAVA Foundation hired BlueSeeds to evaluate the effects of the revolving fund that was set up in Al-Hoceima. In order to comprehend the mechanism and investigate its effectiveness, sustainability, and reproducibility, our team planned a field trip.

In its report, BlueSeeds identified the requirements for the mechanism’s replication at other Mediterranean locations and offered conclusions and actionable recommendations to increase the Al-Hoceima revolving fund’s impact.

Building on this experience in Morocco and following a feasibility study on pre-financing sustainable fishing conducted with WWF Méditerranée in 2019, BlueSeeds created BlueMove in 2022. This fund facilitates artisanal fishermen’s access to European subsidies to accelerate their ecological transition.