The need to know what to manage - community-based marine resource monitoring in Fiji

Overfishing threatens Fijian coral reefs, even those small island areas used mainly for subsistence fishing. Management is needed to ensure the future availability of fish, but means to quantify local pressures on the fishery (i.e., monitoring) are still lacking in most communities. The customary fishing rights system (including traditional authority and resource ownership) not only serves as a basis for management actions, but also has its drawbacks - and does not comprise monitoring. Fishing data collected between 2003 and 2009 on three islands in Fiji exemplify a good possibility of local fish catch monitoring on small islands. However, data processing for scientifically and locally useful outcomes remains a fragile effort, and some management actions may have to remain precautionary rather than based on scientific data or local knowledge.