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British Indian Ocean Territory Observer Programme
In 1996, the Governments of the UK and the The The Republic of South Africa has concluded a Memorandum of Understanding, as required under the CCAMLR Scheme of International Scientific Observation, to allow the UK to supply international observers to work on South African vessels. Since that time, MRAG has supplied observers for South African vessels operating around Prince Edward Islands and on the high seas in the south west Indian Ocean. Observers have worked in close collaboration with the Sea Fisheries Research Institute (SFRI) in Cape Town. Due to CCAMLR requirements, the operation of this program is very similar to that described for the South Atlantic.
In October 1991, a 200 nautical-mile Fisheries Conservation and Management Zone (FCMZ) was declared around the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), comprising Diego Garcia and the other atolls of the Chagos Archipelago. Since its inception, MRAG has been responsible to the BIOT Authorities for the sustainable management of the fisheries within this zone. Target species are tuna (yellowfin, bigeye and skipjack) and billfish (marlin and swordfish). The largest fleets operating in the region are French and Spanish purse seiners and Taiwanese and Japanese longliners.
MRAG manages and operates a complete monitoring, control and surveillance program on behalf of the BIOT Administration in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. MRAG supplies experienced BIOT senior fisheries protection officers, who are responsible for the design and implementation of the surveillance and monitoring program.
Since 1993, MRAG has placed observers on offshore purse seine and longline vessels licenced to fish in the BIOT FCMZ. MRAG is responsible for all arrangements regarding observer recruitment, training, equipment supply, data collection and assessment (including database design and management), travel, insurance and technical support. The main tasks of observers in BIOT are to collect biological fisheries data for both target and bycatch species. Observers also collect considerable detailed information describing operational aspects of the tuna fishery, particularly concerning fishing effort, including search and capture techniques. The data collected by observers plays a vital role in the management of the BIOT tuna fishery. The results also contribute directly to the regional scientific assessment of fish stocks in the Indian Ocean through the work of the British/Seychelles Fisheries Commission, the British/Mauritian Fisheries Commission, and the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC).
The FCMZ of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) encompasses the atolls, reef and coral banks of the Chagos Archipelago. The rich inshore marine resources of this area have been targeted for some years by fishers from Mauritius and Sri Lanka. Principle target resources include lutjanid and eteline snappers, lethrinids (emperors), and serranids (groupers). Since 1991, MRAG has undertaken the comprehensive management of this fishery on behalf of the BIOT Authorities. As part of the biological assessment, MRAG has deployed an observer within the Mauritian fleet in every season since 1993 for a period of three months. The program’s purpose is the collection of biological data to supplement information collected by commercial logbooks, verification of fishing activity reports, and the support of the fishery surveillance program. As with the observer program for the BIOT offshore tuna fishery, MRAG provides a complete service, including observer recruitment, training, equipment supply, data collection and handling (including database design and management), travel, insurance and technical support. The inshore program is run in collaboration with the Albion Fisheries Research Centre (AFRC) in Mauritius. Deployment of observers is coordinated with AFRC. Data collected during these observer programs has also contributed to other studies, including an MRAG managed project funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) on the stock assessment of tropical snappers and groupers.