Legal and Policy Instruments on Rights and Provisions on Other Issues in Small-Scale Fisheries of Nigeria

An analysis of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Indicator 14. b.1. in the Nigerian context shows that no data are available on the degree of application of a legal, regulatory, policy, or institutional framework which recognizes and protects access rights for small-scale fisheries for Nigeria. The country has endorsed the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines), but there have been no concrete efforts to implement them. Small-scale fisheries in Nigeria are regulated and governed by legal and policy instruments both at the national and state levels, which are anchored in fundamental provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as last amended in 2010. The constitution, as amended, places matter of small-scale fisheries in the Concurrent Legislative List, which means that laws and regulations can be enacted both at the national and state levels. It is noteworthy that Nigeria is a signatory to many international instruments and conventions that have both direct and indirect bearing on Nigeria’s small-scale fisheries. This chapter adopts a transdisciplinary and collaborative approach to examining the extant legal and policy frameworks with respect to the rights of fishers and to what extent they are directly mentioned or implied in these provisions. It is also based on an exploratory assessment of how these pluralities of instruments address the key small-scale fisheries legal issues in Nigeria. Legal provisions are very important in ensuring that the rights of small-scale fishers, fish workers, and fishing communities are recognized and protected.