Pacific Islands Regional Oceanscape Program - Second Phase for Economic Resilience: Federated States of Micronesia (FSM PROPER)

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The Pacific Islands Regional Oceanscape Program - Second Phase for Economic Resilience (PROPER) project in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) (The Project, or FSM PROPER). The Project is part of the Pacific Islands Regional Oceanscape Program (PROP), a series of projects, which aims to strengthen the shared management of selected Pacific Island oceanic and coastal fisheries, and the critical habitats upon which they depend. The Program is structured to allow national and regional projects to work in conjunction, and for all national projects to contribute towards regional policy objectives and focus on addressing national priorities. The Project is the second in the series for the country. It aims to strengthen regional collaboration and national capacity for the management and the sustainable development of the oceanic and coastal fisheries sector in the FSM. The National Oceanic Resources Management Authority (NORMA) will be the primary implementing agency (IA) for the Project. NORMA has significant experience with World Bank (WB) procedures as they were implemented in FSM PROP 1st Phase (P151754). The Department of Health and Social Affairs (DHSA), Department of Resources and Development (DRD) and the Department of Environment, Climate Change & Emergency Management (DECEM) will be supporting IAs for specific Components and activities under their respective mandates. The Project activities are defined in general terms and may not be fully quantified prior to appraisal. The project has three components, aligned with the Program’s thematic, and one project management component: Component 1: Strengthening the effective management and harnessing of oceanic fisheries. This component will support improved oceanic fisheries management and maximization of the domestic value added through institutional strengthening of NORMA, consolidating for certification for food safety and legal compliance to enable FSM fish products to enter regional value chains and reach high-end markets.Subcomponent 1.1. Strengthening the enabling environment for oceanic fisheries will strengthen the enabling environment for seafood safety and traceability through; (i) skills and competency training of CA staff in good hygiene practices (GHP), good manufacturing practices (GMP), hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP); vessel and facility inspections and audits; (ii) institutional strengthening support of the CA through inter alia; drafting of Standard Operating Procedures, CA Regulations, NCP and Industry standards; development of auditing and inspections systems; laboratory protocols, sampling and testing protocols; (iii) pre-feasibility studies for infrastructure and equipment requirements (offices, laboratory, equipment) for sustainable and effective operation of the CA; (iv) improving dockside landing sites for seafood safety; (v) support design, construction, installation and validation of an Integrated Fisheries Information Management System; (vi) support effective detection, deterrence, and elimination IUU fishing through upgrading electronic monitoring and reporting; training and capacity building, etc; (vii) design and construction of a new NORMA office building and a new satellite office for NORMA in Kosrae State.Subcomponent 1.2. Maximizing the value of oceanic resources to the FSM will support inter alia: (i) capacity building and preparation of policy analyses for investment and increasing fisheries revenues, IUU fishing and oceanic fisheries and exports; (ii) reviewing legal frameworks that a relevant to FSM meeting regional compliance particularly related to authorized fishing vessels entering FSM Ports, and (iii) pre-feasibility and cost-benefit studies on priority fisheries infrastructure, and investment in climate proofed fisheries infrastructure where there is evidence for such infrastructures to be economically viable, etc. Component 2: Strengthening the effective management of, and socio-economic benefits from, coastal fisheries. This component aims to sustain and increase benefits from the coastal fisheries by rebuilding the resource base and building value chains through implementation of measures to reduce excessive fishing effort on depleted resources, providing opportunities to re-direct fishing to healthy nearshore pelagics, creating new work opportunities through fishing and development of value-added products, and providing small-scale public infrastructure such as improved landing sites. This is underpinned by improved market data collection as well as monitoring through vessel registration legislation.Activities under subcomponent 2.1. Strengthening coastal fisheries institutional and legal framework include: (i) technical assistance to review of existing coastal legislation in each State and to finalize vessel registration and mandatory sea safety equipment; (ii) workshops and trainings to communicate legislative updates and requirements; (iii) goods and equipment to support vessel registration and sea safety programs; (iv) assessment of existing data and development of new/revised protocols for fisheries and ecological data collection; (v) procurement of goods and equipment for data collection; (vi) refurbishment of the Kosrae Department of Resources and Economic Affairs (DREA) Fisheries Office; (vii) improving inshore MCS capacity through supplies, equipment, training and construction of watch houses in Pohnpei Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).Subcomponent 2.2. Delivering critical marina infrastructure (Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae)will support (i) the development of “marinas” i.e., improved landing sites to serve as a multi-purpose facility as a centralized location for fishers to bring in, process and market catches, for boat servicing, and other economic activities, with consideration for monitoring and enforcement of activities including pollution control and for energy efficiency, emission reduction, and climate-resilient design.Subcomponent 2.3. Fish Processing and Value Chain Addition will support (i) training fishers on value chain addition; (ii) feasibility assessments for value chain addition through fish processing in Kosrae; (iii) investigating and disseminating activities to boost coastal restoration and provide alternative jobs, such as fishing around anchored FADs and supportive measures (e.g., safety at sea), restorative and community aquaculture; and (iv) increasing aquaculture capacity by improving National Aquaculture Center (NAC) capacity and feasibility assessments for commercial aquaculture production. Component 3: Strengthening the sustainable management, protection and resilience of marine habitats addresses impacts of land-based and marine pollution on coastal and marine ecosystems, which affect the health of fisheries, fish stock, and sanitary standards.Subcomponent 3.1. Environmental protection and marine habitat management will support (i) environmental awareness campaigns on environmental pollution with support provided to the Chuuk’ Women’s Council to enable expanded environmental outreach; (ii) identifying options for restoring and monitoring dredging sites; (iii) establishment of an ecological baseline through comprehensive ecological assessments in all four States with support to disseminate findings. Subcomponent 3.2. Improvements to waste management activities will include the (i) review waste management strategies, emergency response protocols and pollution laws; (ii) improvements to hazardous waste management in Pohnpei and Yap; (iii) technical assistance on legislative improvements, infrastructure planning including detailed environmental and social impact assessments and detailed design of facilities, cost recovery and waste market creation in Chuuk; and (iv) capacity building for staff in waste management and emergency response.Component 4: Project Management. The Project would finance consultant services for the Project Implementation Unit (PIU), annual financial audits, operating costs, goods