Media Observatory for Sustainable Fishing in Africa
MOSFA
We champion the Cause to Influence Public Policies in Fisheries Management
Who We Are
MOSFA journalists at Elmina, Ghana - 2016 Photo: Allieu M. Shaw
We are an association of media professionals and journalists, fisheries experts, and researchers in more than 44 countries in Africa, speaking with one voice with the aim of eradicating hunger and alleviating poverty in Africa, and by advocating for and championing the cause to influence public polices against overexploitation of Africa's marine resources and destruction of ecosystems.
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Our network consists of a diversity of individuals from dynamic cultures in Africa, each bringing a unique expertise in advancing a shared commitment to eradicating poverty in Africa and empowering gender participation in promoting Africa's Blue Economy, and reducing climate change impacts on biodiversity.
Our network lacks the capacity and resources to fully investigate the exploitation of Africa's marine resources; however, it will not deter our resolve and commitment on-behalf of Africa's people to advocate for paradigms and ideas that drive policy-making to end illegal and unregulated capture of Africa's marine resources.
We will collaborate with other entities who have the capacity to build a robust and effective mechanism to gather evidence-based data and disseminate reports about the illegal activities being carried out by state and non-state actors purporting to seek the interest of African countries and its ecosystems.
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As journalists, our association has a mandate to run media campaigns to report corrupt practices related to fisheries governance in Africa. Using the expert knowledge of our members and collaborative partners around the world, we will seek, trace, and make public any factual information related to illegal fisheries activities, fraudulent documents and permits, and unreported financial transactions that ensued.
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We will do so by forging relationships with organizations that complement our mission, vision, and objectives. They include:
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U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
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European Union Fisheries Control Agency
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FISH-i Africa
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TRYGG MAT Tracking
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U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
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Stop Illegal Fishing
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INTERPOL Project Scale
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Friends of the Earth Norway (Naturvernforbund)
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FishWise
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FishCRIME
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Pew Ending Illegal Fishing Project
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West Africa Regional Fisheries Program (WARFP)
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World Bank
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African Union/IBAR
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NEPAD
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Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC)
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GREENPEACE
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Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF)
MOSFA Reflects a Diversity of Professional Men and Women from all Areas of the Media.
2018 Outlook
In 2017, we were able to register MOSFA as an NGO in Ghana, West Africa. We ratified the MOSFA Constitution and submitted a workshop proposal to the World Bank.
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In 2018, we are optimistic for a better outlook for MOSFA. Our goals this year is to:
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Develop proposals for media workshops and training for our member-journalists and media partners in Africa
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Engage in fund-raising activities to help finance our workshops and training activities
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Select a financial system to track donations, grants, and in-kind contributions
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Push for more transparency and accountability from government officials
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Develop a dashboard to track and measure the impact of our news stories and events
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Disseminate more news reports, produce more radio talk shows, sponsor events, and participate in agriculture trade shows
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Forge collaborative partnerships with organizations, universities, research institutions, media houses, and law enforcement agencies
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Create incentives to inspire talented individuals and promising journalists to join MOSFA
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Engage with the stakeholders in a more proactive manner
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Work with AU/IBAR, the EU and the World Bank to improve stories related to Africa's Blue Economy.