Closed Seasons for Octopus

Over 65% of the Indian Ocean reefs are threatened by over exploitation. The Octopus Management project is designed to convince the beneficiaries of Zanzibar’s eastern coast, that active protection and responsible management of natural resources are more promising in the long run. We’ll implement this project with the British NGO blueventures.org. The economic benefits of sustainable resource protection can be most quickly demonstrated through octopus management, as fishing revenues can almost be doubled in the first year.

Our approach

In regions of the developing world that rely on fishing, the enforcement capacity and the financial situation of governments are generally too weak to be able to successfully implement resource protection successfully (Purcell 2010). For this reason, we have decided to apply a 'bottom-up' approach and implement a protection program together with the local population.

Our plan

With one, later two annual protective seasons, we want to protect the local squid population in the long term as well as promote the sustainability of octopus fishing and increase the catch rates. Our first protective seasons is planned in a phase in which the squid will double their weight every two months. We have learned from our partner organization Blue Ventures in Madagascar what it takes to conduct successful octopus management. Our partner Mwambao has already gained relevant experience on the neighbouring island of Pemba. We are aware of the fact that we cannot copy this approach in Zanzibar 1:1, but we have to consider the special context.