The training activities foreseen by the Italian component of the EU-funded Go Blue Programme are kicking off. The objective? To introduce higher quality standards along the fishery value chain, a sector of excellence for Italy and of strategic development for Kenya
Preparing Kenyan fishermen to have an entrepreneurial approach, improving their skills on the correct procedures for products conservation, on the requirements of HACCP system for food control and on the best practices for the cold chain management, which are crucial aspects for fish quality enhancement. These were the main themes proposed during the first module of the training activities started in the month of October in southern Kenya; the activities are developed in the framework of the Italian component of the Go Blue Programme funded by the European Union to advance the blue economy agenda in the country. The trainings were carried out by sectoral experts from CIHEAM Bari, the technical partner of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) in Nairobi for Go Blue. Training materials and sessions have been prepared both in English and in Swahili languages; the proposed contents are the result of questionnaires and surveys conducted during the first months of implementation, where main challenges and training needs have been identified in target Beach Management Units (BMU), the community cooperatives bringing together all the fishing stakeholders in Kenya.
The blue economy is a strategic sector for Kenya, and the fishing sector has a strong potential for the local communities, both in terms of income generation and in terms of food security; this potential is not fully exploited, since malnutrition and socio-economic disadvantage still characterize the coastal region. One of the challenges precisely concerns the sub optimal quality of fish: in many cases, there is a scarce awareness of necessary procedures and regulations to ensure adequate hygiene standards along the production chain. This is combined with the gaps in the cold chain, which is essential to ensure food safety: it is difficult to ensure that products are properly preserved, when most BMUs lack ice production machines and ice boxes for fish storage. The result is that the invaluable fish resources in the Kenyan coast are not adequately exploited, access to the market is compromised and small-scale fishing remains largely an unprofitable activity.
“The trainings have been designed to suit our audiences in terms of scientific and technical languages. Our goal is to put fishermen in the conditions to be able to offer safe and quality products“, explained Orazio Albano and Roberto Ugolini from CIHEAM Bari, who flew from Italy to deliver the first module of the training in 3 BMUs of Mombasa, Kwale and Kilifi counties. Around 300 fishermen have been trained to date. "It is crucial for fisheries stakeholders to understand that increasing products’ quality means increasing their value, and this translates into more and better commercial opportunities and consequently better conditions for them and their families".
The realization of tailored training in the target BMUs is one of the activities foreseen by the Italian component of the EU-funded Go Blue Programme, which sees the European Union together with the cooperation agencies of Italy, Portugal, France, Germany, UN HABITAT and UNEP and in partnership with the Government of Kenya and the economic bloc of coastal counties (JKP Secretariat) to foster the blue economy in the country through coastal development. One of the objectives of the Italian component of Go Blue is to enhance fisheries co-management and to strengthen fisheries value chain. Planned activities include the introduction of a labelling scheme based on traceability, which will certify products origin and will ensure compliance with quality standards. The sector of food quality certifications represents in fact one of the Italian excellences, and it is closely linked to a lifestyle that is globally recognized as healthy and sustainable.
Martina Bolognesi, Communication Officer for the Italian component of the Go Blue Programme at the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation