1 Presented by Michael SavinsImproving Livelihoods Roles for the private sector and financing mechanisms Presented by Michael Savins

2 Community clam farming Republic of KiribatiFarmed clams, Tridacna maxima

3 A family on Abaiang Island in Kiribati that has received income for the ocean grow out of aquarium clams From 2008 till present day, Atoll Beauties continues to engage communities on outer islands in Kiribati to farm aquarium clams. Many students now who cannot complete high school because of failure to pay schools fees. Could be as high as 40 % of students. Difficult to influence people to balance livelihood development with church commitments. Income generation

4 Appropriate technologyExcellent ocean grow out conditions High value live export product Appropriate technology due to years of adapting strategies and development by private sector NZ Aid providing direct funding to private sector to support community income generation opportunities Excellent ocean grow out conditions. High value live export product. Appropriate technology due to years of adapting strategies and development by private sector. NZ Aid providing direct funding to private sector to support community income generation opportunities. Appropriate technology

5 Partnerships with Kiribati Fisheries Division and private sector, expands community clam farming to more outer island communities. Sustainable practices and long term commitment Atoll beauties spawns and farm raises seed clams, 2 to 3 years before transfer to community farms. Rural community income generation within sustainable practices, that can benefit almost the entire community. The choice of all communities to date is that growth and income cycles are rotated throughout all community households Partnerships

6 The biggest challenge is for a rural household to understand how essential a husbandry commitment is to ensure success In this photo a household has entered an agreement to clean clams on a weekly basis. The only investment for the household is their time. By following grow out protocol and cleaning every week, 80 % of clams will survive to export size In this photo I am holding several cymatium, our major predator. The clam tray is full of dead clams. The financial loss can be devastating for all involved. Constraints

7 The major challenge today is unsustainable and unfair marketing practices regionally. In the past 18 mths Tahiti has devastated the international market for aquarium clams, by exporting wild harvested clams with subsidized air freight The livelihoods of the community farmers in this photo are in jeopardy. Major Challenges

8 Exports of live tropical fishExports of live tropical fish. Air freight costs and resource management issues Serious safety concerns Photo: Antoine Teitelbaum Diver Vanuatu

9 Exports of farmed live coralYayasan-Sabah-group Potential for large scale community farming activities Environmental management concerns Air freight costs restrict many countries

10 Post harvest, value addingLarge urban markets urb Good wholesome locally produced products offset the trade imbalance with imports. And offer healthier options to the bulk of imported food items. Large urban markets, provide a great opportunity . Private sector drives innovative products

11 Tuna Sausages Wholesome local foodsInternational efforts should invest in food technology development Wholesome local foods Can improve diet and income generation opportunities Private sector has driven the research and development. Commercial viability is essential. Increased market potential for locally caught fish. Employment opportunities Women are the best fish processors.

12 Appropriate technologyAppropriate technology. This prototype convection drier will be replicated on a much larger scale Invest in Appropriate technology

13 Back up heaters can ensure qualityBack up heaters can ensure quality. Trials with coconut husk back up heaters have worked well in the rural environment

14 Rural locations in the Pacific islands offer great potential to effectively scale up productionFlavored and dried tuna

15 Recent work with value added, flavored and dried tuna in Somalia

16 Prime tuna cuts and tuna waste are value added and driedPrime tuna cuts and tuna waste are value added and dried. The economics improve dramatically if the fish waste is value added. A shelf stable product is readily marketed during periods of low landings. Rural communities can access urban markets. Prime tuna cuts offer income generation while flavored and dried fish waste offers food security.

17 Livelihoods development must come from a grass roots approach with appropriate technological development Export standards can be achieved within the context of a rural community lifestyle. Lack of capital to start. The right equipment and tools. Education in market characteristics. Government must provide real incentives. Balancing church commitments with livelihood development. Ahling Onorio. Ahling Onorio training rural women in production of virgin coconut oil.

18 Maskelyne Island, South Malekula Vanuatu

19 The Maskelyne Island community do appear to take their Fisheries Management very seriously

20 A key to sustainable marine resource management is to provide alternatives for the livelihoods most affected Maskelyne Island community is a good example of a community that takes marine resource management seriously and in return have not been provided with alternatives. This rural training center is intensely under funded This rural training center is intensely under funded

21 On Maskelyne Island a private NZ family are doing their best to assist the rural communitySometimes it doesn’t take a lot of capital to develop livelihoods income generation. But it does take time and long term commitment. Donors are reluctant to move out of their comfort zone and truly engage with community .Donors are reluctant to move out of their comfort zone and truly engage with community

22 The complexities of community situations are challenging, donors solving technical problems but implementation even more challenging Solving technical problems before financial ones is ok but better the other way round. Problems mount up if considered Need all solutions to help minimise risk Ishikawa diagram courtesy Jamie Whitford

23 Management within many donor agencies appears to be moving further away from Pacific rural realityWe must get out into communities and engage in balanced dialogue. This has been our biggest failure. I am amazed at just how out of touch many international agencies are. Agencies are reluctant to now place volunteers on outer islands in Kiribati. Senior management believe no one would want to live their. It appears volunteers are not asked, many would sign a waiver to accept the risks of living on an outer island. I was in a meeting where many national staff advised that they had worked with international volunteers that enjoyed their experience on outer islands, and helped various society groups develop proposals that secured funding for worthwhile community projects. These opportunities are now gone.

24 Cold Chain Fisheries Reliable and cost effective ice supplies essential in commercial fisheries Large volumes of quality ice required for such operations 12 Meter small scale Tuna Long liner KIR 24 design. 12 Meter small scale tuna long liner. KIR 24 design

25 Ice Machines Japan has provided numerous quality ice machine plants in rural locations for many years The justification for most of these plants has been political Today Kiribati has more than 10 of these plants on outer Islands

26 Community Managed Ice Fish MarketsToday in Kiribati most of the community managed ice fish markets are not operational Lack of revenue to provide basic fuel costs Extremely limited market for fresh fish in rural communities Expensive/limited transport to urban markets

27 Commercial Ice SuppliesThe only commercial supply of ice in Kiribati today is the Kiribati Fish Ltd, KFL. International private sector fishing companies do provide good opportunities for expansion of domestic fishing operations in Pacific Island countries I doubt if any government managed or community managed fishing operations are commercially viable Reliable and inexpensive ice supplies are paramount to the success of cold chain fisheries

28 Mother vessel concept Okeanos an 18 meter sail and solar powered catamaran provided support to small scale fishing craft from various fishermen's associations . A viable option that can allow fishermen to carry out two days fishing with one days fuel Okeanos an 18 meter sail and solar assisted catamaran provided support to small scale fishermen’s associations

29 Appropriate and cost effective fishing craft.We must provide alternative designs, small scale artisanal fishermen are struggling to survive, due to impacts of the distant water fleet. If we do not act, entire small scale fishing sectors may fail within the next 5 to 10 years. Efficient multi hull vessels with low investment costs, offer excellent work deck area and suitable fish hold capacity I believe this is one of the most important considerations for livelihoods development in most all the Pacific Islands. Kiribati domestic fisheries development as with most Pacific Island countries, relies on action to develop the incredible potential at this time, for increased employment opportunities for Kiribati youth

30 Present work in Somalia we are developing low cost molds to build prototype designs in fiberglass

31 SPC does great work in appropriate livelihoods development.SPC master fishermen have played a key role within appropriate fisheries development, these activities should be expanded In the past SPC also had a section dedicated to post harvest fisheries development, this project was my inspiration to develop savory dried fish products, these activities should be expanded SPC could take on the appropriate fishing vessel design development work once provided by the FAO regional fisheries support program, this is essential at present in the Pacific and yet non existent Increased funding could really improve activities

32 Management Politically motivated projects and commercial activities fail Community managed commercial activities struggle Private sector offer the best chance of success Many donors struggle to link with the private sector Working groups offer the potential link

33 Working groups Australia has just established a new development innovation hub in the department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to engage creative thinkers from inside and outside the public sector I favor this approach, my own experience being part of working groups with PIPSO and the Baurua Group demonstrated sound results Selection processes must be transparent

34 Entrepreneurs “The entrepreneur is not someone of ordinary management ability but one who introduces something entirely new.” Idogho and Augustine (2011) International Journal of Business Management 2011 With regard to a Nigerian Federal Government initiative, these authors go on to highlight a positive correlation between entrepreneurship education introduced into the curriculum for tertiary institutions and the desire/ability and success to set up small scale businesses after graduation

35 Initiatives for the youthThe Taiwan Technical Mission in Kiribati have now, after several years working with community livelihoods development with vegetables, made the decision to concentrate the major part of their efforts with secondary education boarding schools on the islands of Kiribati Encouraging fisheries management with alternative forms of income generation with a similar approach would have merit

36 Business management constraints in the Republic of KiribatiGovernments lack of policies to create a more enabling environment for business to operate There are unnecessary barriers and high cost to set up a business and very little support or programs from government to assist Land issues, high cost of port fees and poor infrastructure Ability to find skilled labor is important

37 Finance mechanisms in the Republic of KiribatiAccessing micro and affordable finance remains an issue, in particular for small to medium businesses to access In essence the only real organizations that offer finance options are the ANZ Commercial Bank, The Development Bank of Kiribati and the Kiribati Provident Fund All are expensive and require substantial paper work to obtain a business loan

38 Other finance mechanisms in KiribatiThere is a lack of NGO micro finance options for new businesses to access. Unfortunately most focus on the macro level We need to seriously look at the micro level to start the new pipe line of businesses and entrepreneurs to access micro loans

39 The need to identify other finance mechanismsWe need to have a serious look at what options are available in the Pacific today A published guide would go a long way to assist small business and entrepreneurs Any assistance packages should be very specifically promoted by various organizations I have accessed several assistance packages over the years and these are hard to find for the first time and often have a limited life

40 Summary Get out to the community with a grass roots approachBuild entrepreneurial management skills within livelihoods programs Invest in appropriate technology and build viable income generation for communities, especially those affected by marine resource management Expand SPC livelihood's activities Aquaculture and mariculture Master fishermen program Post harvest fisheries development Appropriate fishing vessel design development Establish in country working groups with creative thinkers to build the necessary links between government, donors and private sector Improved government policy to support entrepreneurs Develop appropriate finance mechanisms