CIFA

Our Structure

Our five founding members helped to create a fair and transparent constitution and initial Management Committee.  CIFA is no closed shop, we operate on a floating Chair basis in the interests of fairness and equality. 
A professional round table approach rather than a top down boardroom table approach is our style of operation.  We are interested in new members joining our Management Team.  We want to speak with a transparent voice and inclusion of voices will be our guiding principle.

Our Purpose

Our first and ongoing task has been to "stock take" our fishing communities.  We have and will continue to consider the resources fishing communities need to thrive, be it infrastructure in the form of an ice-plant or improved harbour, access to trained crew, or access to a particular fish stock.  We don't have a magic wand, but this is a wish list.  We have to create a cohesive business plan for our coastal fishing based on the needs of grassroots communities, boats and onshore businesses.  The development and collation of a plan which clearly outlines our case and objectives for government will be crucial if we hope to achieve improvement.

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At this crucial time of Brexit negotiations we have also requested our place around the stakeholder tables of Marine Scotland and DEFRA, and with local and national politicians. We aim to have a list of our initial member objectives by early February 2018 at the latest.  If we are to feed into creating a better fisheries management system, and indeed an improved coastal system on land and on sea we need to articulate our requirements.  We will be drawing content for these plans from our membership directly, so join up to feed in.

In the long term our purpose is to help form policies to revive our fishing communities.  We want to ensure that we can look outside of our current system and bring in best practice from other countries.  If in 10 years there are more fishing communities which resemble our Norwegian neighbours towns and villages with a safe, sustainable and productive small, medium and largescale fleet, better science and improved market, then we will be assured the wider policy direction will have aligned to CIFA policy objectives.  Our purpose is to work in partnership to help develop a fairer fisheries future.

Our Policies

Our first policy documents will be uploaded to this website as they are developed.  November 2017 will see our outline vision work, our key immediate target will be a February Brexit Fisheries paper.  If you want to have a transparent role in helping to form that policy, get in touch and join CIFA.

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We welcome fishing associations, businesses connected to fishing, individual fishing boats and community members linked to fishing.  Please fill out the forms on our main page and we'll get back in touch.  Get involved in creating a new fishing future.