Nerissa Nagassar Christine Chan A. Shing

FISHERIES MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM (FISMIS): A TOOL FOR
FISHERIES MANAGEMENT AND POLICY MAKING IN THE CARIBBEAN
LE SYSTEME D’ INFORMATION POUR LA GESTION DES PECHES (FISMIS): UN
OUTIL POUR LA GESTION DE PECHE ET POUR LA POLITIQUE DE DECIS ION DANS
LES CARAÏBES
Nerissa Nagassar
ACP-EU Project on Strengthening Fisheries and Biodiversity Management in ACP Countries, CARICOM
Fisheries Unit, P.O. Box 642, Princess Margaret Drive, Belize City, Belize, Central America
Christine Chan A. Shing
Fisheries Division, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Marine Resources, St Clair Circle, St. Clair. Port of
Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies, E-mail: [email protected].
ABSTRACT
In 1993 the Fisheries Division in Trinidad and Tobago established the Fisheries Division
Information Centre which provides access to bibliographic information to the CARICOM
member countries in the Caribbean. Financially supported by the International Development
Research Centre (IDRC), the Information Centre developed the Fisheries Management and
Information System (FISMIS). This is a comprehensive database system that comprises a number
of bibliographic databases with references on a range of fisheries topics such as: resource
assessment, policy and legislation, biology, ecology and management of stocks, aging techniques
and processing. The information is obtained from the primary literature as well as from
publications of international organisations, universities and fisheries research institutions.
FISMIS also covers extensively “gray literature” on Caribbean finfish and crustacean species,
such as publications and reports produced by fisheries divisions and regional organisations in the
Caribbean. The majority of the bibliographic references are maintained in an archived reprint
collection. FISMIS has contributed greatly to the consolidation of basic information for fisheries
resource assessment and management in the Caribbean. It has also helped to reduce duplication of
research and has thereby allowed a better utilisation of limited funds allocated to the fisheries
research sector.
RESUME
En 1993, la Division de pêche de Trinité-et-Tabago a établi un centre d’e l'information qui permet
d'accéder à l'information bibliographique sur les pays membres de CARICOM dans les Caraïbes.
Financièrement soutenu par le centre international de recherches de développement (IDRC), ce
centre a développé le système d'information pour la gestion de la pêche (FISMIS). C'est un
système complet de base de données, composé d’un certain nombre de bases de données
bibliographiques comprenant des références d’une large gamme d’œuvres relatives à la pêche, par
exemple, l’évaluation des ressources, la politique et la législation, la biologie, l’écologie et la
gestion des stocks, les techniques de détermination d’âge et le traitement du poisson.
L'information a été obtenue à partir de la littérature primaire aussi bien qu’à partir des
publications des établissements internationaux de recherches, d'universités et et des organismes
de pêche. FISMIS couvre également intensivement la littérature ‘grise’ sur les téléostéens et les
crustacés des Caraïbes, telle que des publications et des rapports produits par des divisions de
pêche et des organismes régionaux dans les Caraïbes. La majorité des références bibliographiques
sont maintenues dans une collection archivée de tirés à part. FISMIS a contribué
considérablement à la consolidation d'information de base pour l'évaluation de ressource de pêche
et de gestion dans les Caraïbes. Il a également aidé à réduire la duplication de la recherche et de
ce fait a permis une meilleure utilisation des fonds limités assignés au secteur de recherches de
pêche.
INTRODUCTION
Fisheries play an important economic role in the Caribbean region, yielding more than 70,000 t of
fish annually and providing employment for some 40,000 people. Fisheries management in the
Caribbean faces the usual problems of tropical fisheries: multi-species, multi-gear nature of the
fisheries and the migratory habits of many of the commercially important species. International
industrial fishing fleets operate within Caribbean waters and many Caribbean countries do not
have the resources to monitor these catches or to enforce regulations governing foreign fishing
within their 200 miles Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Beside these factors the relative
closeness of many of the neighboring countries makes many of the exploited fish stocks a shared
resource, calling for the collaboration between the Fisheries Divisions of Caribbean countries to
implement practical management strategies. An essential prerequisite for such cooperation,
though, is convenient and evenly shared access to information on the biology, ecology and status
of the fish stocks.
In response to this increased need for information the Marine Fisheries Analysis Unit (MFAU) of
the Fisheries Division in Trinidad and Tobago established at their premises the Fisheries Division
Information Centre. The Information Centre provides a range of information services to scientists
and fisheries managers in the region. Given the prohibitive cost related to the subscription to
scientific journals, these services concentrate primarily on giving access to bibliographic and
other database distributed on Compact Disks such as Aquatic Science and Fisheries Abstracts
(ASFA), Fish and Fisheries Worldwide (FFWW), WAVES, Fishes of the Caribbean, FishBase
(www.fishbase.org) and ReefBase (www.reefbase.org).
FISMIS:A DATABASE OF CARIBBEAN FISHERIES INFORMATION
In 1989 the Fisheries Division implemented a project to create an integrated ‘Fisheries
Management Information System for Trinidad and Tobago’. The project received funding from
the International Development Res earch Centre (IDRC) of Canada. The scope of the databases
has since been expanded to become a comprehensive repository of bibliographic information on
marine finfish and crustacean species of commercial importance in the Caribbean. The databases
were developed and continue to be maintained using a customised version of CDS/ISIS 3.0, a
software package developed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO). It is a menu-driven information retrieval system which allows users to
browse, search and print bibliographic references.
As a consequence of the regional scope of the databases, FISMIS benefited from the financial and
technical assistance supplied under the CARICOM Fisheries Resource Assessment and
Management Program (CFRAMP) - Data and Information Sub-Project. This project made it
possible to acquire the services of a Fisheries Documentalist who was stationed at the Information
Centre during 1996 and 1997, to service the CARICOM member states and access information
from these countries for the databases.
Bibliographic references in FISMIS are obtained from monographs, journals, conference
proceedings, newspaper articles, publications from international organisations such as FAO and
ICLARM (now the WorldFish Center); university theses and publications from fisheries research
institutions. More importantly, on a regional level, FISMIS is noted for its comprehensive
coverage of “gray literature” on Caribbean finfish species and publications and reports produced
by the Fisher ies Divisions and other regional organisations in the Caribbean. Secondary
information such as bibliographies and references from scientific papers are also included in
FISMIS. Beside the bibliographic references, the Information Centre has in many cases also
acquired hard copies of the referenced source maintained in an archived collection consisting
mainly of reprints. Provision of some of these references may require written approval of the
author or organisation.
Structure of FISMIS
FISMIS comprise seven databases, six of which contain bibliographic information on a wide
range of biological, economic and fisheries management topics related to the artisanal, semiindustrial and industrial fishing activities in the Caribbean. One database (GUIDE) gives
information on human resources related to aquatic research activities in the Caribbean. The other
six components are:
Stock
This database contains at present some 11,500 bibliographic references, dealing primarily with
resource assessment, policy and legislation, biology and management of Caribbean commercial
species. The coverage of this particular database is extensive and represents a repository of
information on Caribbean Fishes found nowhere else in the region. It is a clearinghouse for
information dating back as early as the 1800s. Approximately 60% of the references in the
STOCK database are archived as hard copies at the Fisheries Division Information Centre.
Info
The Database contains over 2,600 bibliographic citations dealing with the management of
fisheries, providing a sound overview of biological, oceanographic, and environmental data.
Subject matter includes fisheries computer programs, fishery statistics, biological sampling, catch
effort systems, data collection surveys, data management and information systems (geographic
and coastal). It is planned to also make this database available as hardcopy.
Ageing
This Database (487 records at the time of writing) was created to support the project on aging of
selected commercial Caribbean species at the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA) in Trinidad and
Tobago. This database is still in its development phase and the Fisheries Division Information
Centre is actively seeking access to information for this database by requesting documents from
scientists and research organisations whose research includes the aging of tropical finfish.
Fispro
A small database containing approximately 605 records at the time of writing, which includes
bibliographic citations on fish processing practices, methodology and related areas. The database
covers fish processing practices such as salting, drying and smoking of fish and post harvest
practices.
Cruise
This is an inventory of fishery and oceanographic research cruises conducted in the Caribbean
region. Based on cruise reports, it provides a record of the vessels used, the type of data recorded,
area covered and gear employed. Where available, major objectives of the cruise and summary of
the results are also given.
Gulp
The Gulf of Paria database was created as part of an Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project
jointly carried out by FAO and the Government of Trinidad and Tobago. There are approximately
1,200 records of published information on the Gulf of Paria, which is situated between Trinidad
and Venezuela. This area represents the most important commercial fishing ground for Trinidad
and is an important nursery area for juvenile commercial species. The database contains
information on the fisheries, oceanography and bathymetry of the area. Information is also
available on environmentally sensitive areas, industrial and chemical pollution and other coastal
zone activities, thus allowing assessment of environmental impacts of industries located on the
coast of the Gulf of Paria.
The Use of FISMIS
FISMIS has increasingly been recognised as a source of valuable information as well as a tool to
identify available sources of information. Its wide coverage of the biology of commercial species,
international and regional legislation, stock assessment and management practices implemented
by Caribbean countries, has provided a solid information base for fishery manager and
researchers in the Caribbean. FISMIS has also helped to reduce the duplication of research and
allowed a better utilisation of funds allocated to the fisheries research sector in Trinidad and
Tobago. There is therefore an information foundation from which CARICOM countries can
access fisheries related data and information to formulate policies and assist in research on
fisheries resources of the Caribbean.
With the availability of Internet and e-mail facilities at the Fisheries Division Information Centre
in 1996, there has been a marked increase in the quantity and efficiency of accession and
dissemination of information contained in FISMIS (see Table 1). Scientists and fisheries
managers from Caribbean countries – at least to the extent that they have access to the Internet can now request searches by e-mail as well as submit titles and documents, and even Annual
Reports of their respective departments via e-mail.
Outlook
The Fisheries Division’s continued efforts to maintain and develop the databases and CFRAMP’s
assistance under the Data and Information Sub-project has made researchers and policy makers in
the Caribbean more aware of the data and wealth of information available on the fisheries of their
countries and research being conducted in neighboring islands. In recognition of this important
role, the Fisheries Division Information Centre in Trinidad and Tobago was designated the
Regional Centre for fisheries and fisheries related information in the Caribbean.
However, on conclusion of CFRAMP’s Data and Information Subproject, assistance from
CFRAMP could no longer be sustained. The Fisheries Division of Trinidad and Tobago is still
dedicated to servicing the needs of Caribbean counterparts. This is especially so in light of recent
approaches to sustainable fisheries management which focus on the establishment of historical
baselines for sustainability contained in past descriptions of the fisheries, found in the literature.
The Division is actively seeking financial assistance to support the continuation of this important
work.
Table 1: Number of searches conducted by FISMIS staff, by year
Year
1994
1995
1996
1997
Requests received
locally
36
20
41
225
Requests received
from the region
20
34
100
101
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors wish to acknowledge the contribution of Mr. Boris Fabres, CFRAMP, to the FISMIS
project. His vision of a comprehensive information system for the Caribbean and his continued
support were instrumental in making the project a success.