Profishblue Meeting In Harare Puts Blue Economy On The Map
The future of fish on Southern Africa’s plates is being quietly negotiated in a Harare conference room this week, as regional experts gather to decide how lakes, rivers, and dams will feed a growing population and power a rising Blue Economy.
For two days, from Thursday to Friday, fisheries and aquaculture officials from 16 Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states are meeting in Harare under the Programme for Improving Fisheries Governance and Blue Economy Trade Corridors in the Southern African Region (PROFISHBLUE). Their goal: to strengthen regional fisheries governance, expand intra-regional fish trade, and unlock new Blue Economy investment opportunities.
The session, formally the eighth Project Technical Committee (PTC‑08) meeting, is reviewing progress on a wide set of priorities — from harmonised fisheries standards and cross-border trade rules, to digital information systems and cold-chain infrastructure — with direct implications for smallholder fishers from Kariba to Kazungula.
Why Fisheries Governance Matters For Southern Africa
Speaking ahead of the meeting, PROFISHBLUE project coordinator Dr Alexander Shula Kefi framed the programme as a central pillar of regional integration in the water sector.
“This programme aligns very well with the SADC Fisheries Protocol, which came into force in 2001,” said Dr Kefi. “Let me encourage stakeholders to view this programme as an opportunity beyond the confines of their countries but for regional integration within the Blue Economy context in line with the SADC vision.”
FFA Explainer:
The Blue Economy refers to the sustainable use of ocean, lake, and river resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs, while preserving the health of aquatic ecosystems. For Africa, this includes fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, shipping, and emerging sectors like offshore energy.
In a region where fish is often the most affordable source of animal protein for low-income households, how these waters are governed is not an abstract policy question. It touches food security, nutrition, and the cash income of thousands of small-scale fishers and fish traders — many of them women and youth.
“The inland fisheries sector in Southern Africa has a crucial role to play in providing food security and nutrition, particularly for poorer segments of the population to sustain livelihoods while driving economic development,” said Dr Kefi.
The meeting in Harare sits squarely in the vision of AU Agenda 2063, which recognises the Blue Economy as a key engine for Africa’s transformation, and speaks to national strategies like Zimbabwe’s National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) that aim to grow agriculture and agro-based exports.
Lake Kariba At The Heart Of The Blue Economy Push
If there is one waterbody where the promise and pressures of the Blue Economy collide, it is Lake Kariba. Straddling the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, the lake supports thousands of fishers and fish farmers, and anchors both countries’ freshwater fish supply.
Under Dr Kefi’s coordination, PROFISHBLUE has helped spearhead a dedicated Lake Kariba Blue Economy Strategy and Investment Plan, designed to drive sustainable fish production and improve livelihoods in both Zimbabwe and Zambia.
The Harare meeting is expected to review the final report on this plan, alongside stock assessment work for Lake Tanganyika. For Zimbabwean policymakers, this is more than a technical document — it could shape future licensing systems, enforcement approaches, and investment priorities for Kariba’s kapenta rigs and cage aquaculture projects.
FFA Explainer:
Stock assessment is the scientific process of estimating the size and health of a fish population. It helps managers decide how much fish can be harvested without depleting the resource, and whether current fishing pressure is sustainable.
Practical collaboration between Zimbabwe and Zambia has already begun to show results, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), a key implementing partner in PROFISHBLUE.
“The collaboration between the two countries for more sustainable systems is progressing each year, and I am confident that this new project will succeed,” said FAO Subregional Coordinator for Southern Africa, Mr Patrice Talla. “This programme will set the tone for more Blue Economy sectors’ sustainable economic growth in the SADC region.”
What Profishblue Is Changing On The Ground
The PROFISHBLUE programme is funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and implemented across 16 SADC member states in partnership with FAO, the SADC Secretariat, and other technical institutions.
While the Harare meeting is about policy and planning, several concrete achievements are already visible across the region:
- Cold-chain infrastructure: Refrigerated fish trucks have been handed over and cold-room facilities constructed in several member states, including Zimbabwe, to reduce post-harvest losses, improve fish quality, and strengthen market access.
- Harmonised standards: More than a dozen regional fisheries standards have been aligned to accelerate cross-border fish trade and support coordinated border management.
- Governance frameworks: Countries are at various stages of implementing updated fisheries governance systems linked to the SADC Fisheries Protocol.
- Digital tools: New fisheries information and monitoring platforms are moving from design to operational testing.
For Zimbabwean farmers and fishers, cold storage is often the difference between selling today at a distressed price or holding for tomorrow’s better market. At Kariba, many artisanal operators still rely on ice blocks and open-market trading. Cold rooms and refrigerated transport can open doors to urban supermarkets, regional buyers, and even exports.
Delegates to the Harare meeting are scheduled to visit the Zimbabwe Fish Producers Association cold-chain facility on Friday afternoon — a practical stop that links conference discussions to real-world constraints faced by producers and traders.
For smallholder fish farmers experimenting with ponds in places like Mhondoro, Gokwe, or Mutoko, better cold-chain and harmonised standards could make it easier to plug into formal value chains, alongside commercial players on Lake Kariba.
How Digital Systems And Surveillance Could Change The Sector
Among the headline issues on the PTC‑08 agenda is the operationalisation of digital fisheries information systems and vessel monitoring and surveillance technologies.
FFA Explainer:
Digital fisheries information systems collect and manage data on catches, fishing effort, licences, and vessel movements. Combined with vessel monitoring systems (VMS), they help authorities track where boats are fishing, detect illegal activity, and make evidence-based management decisions.
For SADC, better data and surveillance could help curb illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, while giving honest operators more predictable rules. Stronger monitoring also builds confidence among investors considering aquaculture projects, feed mills, or processing plants.
Yet there are trade-offs to manage. Installing and running these systems costs money and demands skilled staff. For small-scale fishers on canoes or small rigs, there is a risk that complex rules and digital reporting could feel like a new barrier, rather than a helping hand. Delegates in Harare are expected to debate how to design systems that work for both enforcement agencies and communities.
PROFISHBLUE is also supporting feasibility studies for seafood clusters — geographic hubs where fish production, processing, storage, and trade can be concentrated to create jobs and attract services. While most of these cluster concepts are still on paper, they signal a more industrial vision of the sector that will need to sit alongside traditional lakeshore and riverine fisheries.
Zimbabwe’s Place In A Regional Fish Trade Corridor
Zimbabwe is landlocked, but not water-poor. From Lake Kariba and Tugwi-Mukosi to countless small dams, fish and aquaculture are quietly expanding. The country’s role in regional fish trade has been modest, but harmonised standards and improved cold-chain capacity under PROFISHBLUE could change that.
By aligning its regulations with SADC-wide standards, Zimbabwe can reduce delays at borders, improve sanitary compliance, and attract traders from neighbouring states. For women who dominate informal fish trading along corridors like Kariba–Harare–Mutare, streamlined rules and better storage could mean higher margins and less spoilage.
These efforts speak directly to NDS1’s emphasis on value addition, regional markets, and rural industrialisation, and to the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 on conserving and sustainably using oceans, seas, and marine resources.
As SADC’s fisheries standards and systems tighten, countries that invest early in compliance, certification, and traceability will be better placed to benefit from any future preferential trade arrangements or regional procurement schemes.
For small-scale pond farmers growing tilapia in peri-urban Harare or along the Mazowe Valley, the signal is clear: the rules of the game are shifting towards greater formality, but also towards bigger market opportunities for those who can meet quality and safety requirements.
Balancing Regional Vision With Local Realities
The Harare meeting is not only about big regional corridors. Delegates are also expected to discuss sustainability plans at country level, ensuring that projects launched under donor funding can be maintained once external financing tapers off.
This is where national governments, farmers’ organisations, and private investors must step forward. Refrigerated trucks and cold rooms need maintenance budgets. Digital systems need data bundles and technicians. Enforcement needs fuel. Without local ownership, even the best-designed regional programme can fade when the grant period ends.
At the same time, PROFISHBLUE’s emphasis on regional integration offers real opportunities. Pooling resources across 16 countries allows for shared training, joint stock assessments, and common tools that no single country could easily afford on its own. For landlocked states like Zimbabwe, being part of a stronger SADC fisheries bloc could open doors to coastal value chains and knowledge exchanges.
For farmers and fishers reading about these high-level meetings, the immediate question is often simple: Will this help me get fair prices, reduce my losses, and protect the resource my children will depend on?
The answer will depend on what happens after the delegates leave Harare — how fast cold-chain facilities are rolled out, how inclusive new rules are for small operators, and how actively fishers’ voices are included in shaping the Blue Economy strategies now being drafted.
Yet there is a quiet significance to a regional fisheries meeting choosing Harare as its venue. It signals that Zimbabwe, long known as a maize and tobacco powerhouse, is also starting to be recognised as a serious player in the Blue Economy conversation.
As delegates board their buses for a field visit to the Zimbabwe Fish Producers Association’s cold-chain facility on Friday afternoon, they will be stepping out of the policy documents and into the chilled rooms where the Blue Economy either becomes real — or remains a promise on paper.
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