India has moved into the next crucial phase of developing a National Plan of Action for Small-Scale Fisheries (NPOA-SSF), bringing the country closer to a comprehensive framework aimed at protecting the livelihoods of millions of small-scale fishers.Abhilaksh Likhi, Union Fisheries Secretary, on Tuesday formally launched the development phase of India’s NPOA-SSF, based on guidelines suggested by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The country has completed the initiation phase, which involved assessing the sector, mapping stakeholders and identifying legal and governance gaps under the FAO framework.The final stage will involve implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the NPOA developed in the current phase. A draft is expected to be released on World Fisheries Day on November 21.The announcement was made at the valedictory session of a two-day national workshop in Puducherry to review the first phase of the FAO-guided NPOA-SSF process.India’s marine fisheries are predominantly small-scale but highly diverse, Likhi said, stressing that the NPOA-SSF should go beyond being a policy document and serve as a practical framework to strengthen livelihoods, improve safety, secure access to resources and build resilience among fishing communities.During the first phase, the government, with support from the Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO), prepared a profile of marine small-scale fisheries, mapped stakeholders and undertook a governance, policy and legal review using the FAO’s SSF diagnostic framework.The consultations have already led to changes in the intervention logic, based on concerns raised by fishers and fisherwomen over safety, boat losses and the largely unrecognised work of women in drying, curing, vending and net-making, Likhi said.The process will now move to State-level consultations before priorities, responsibilities, resources and implementation arrangements are finalised.“India’s NPOA-SSF experience will help put the Bay of Bengal’s small-scale fisheries agenda on the global stage,” said Varun Tandon, International Fisheries Specialist, FAO.The workshop was jointly organised by the Union Fisheries Department, BOBP-IGO and the FAO.The exercise assumes greater significance as it seeks to address a longstanding implementation gap in the sector, said P. Krishnan, Director, BOBP-IGO. India already has policies and schemes covering several aspects of small-scale fisheries, but the NPOA-SSF is intended to bring these strands together into a single, measurable and participatory national framework, with clearly defined priorities, responsibilities, resources and monitoring mechanisms.Published on September 1, 2026