Author: Dita Larasati (Capture Fisheries Assistant)

Responsible fisheries management that is vigorously carried out by all parties requires accurate scientific data to support its implementation. Data is obtained by collecting information overseen by the state through the National Commission for the Assessment of Fish Resources (Komnaskajiskan) and conducted by Indonesian expert researchers.

Komnaskajiskan and WWF Indonesia, as stakeholders, are working together to develop guidelines for fisheries researchers and practitioners in conducting fisheries data collection activities. The guidelines will be outlined in the form of a protocol. The protocol will ensure the quality of resource monitoring activities carried out and ensure that changes that occur in nature can be detected. Not because measurements are taken by different people or in different ways.

The protocol was developed with experts from Komnaskajiskan, Dir. SDI (Directorate of Fish Resources), P4KSI (Research Center for Fisheries Management and Conservation of Fish Resources), and senior Indonesian researcher Prof. Purwito Martosubroto.

Held in Bogor on August 10-11, the draft protocol was presented and discussed directly by the review team to be revised and compiled into a protocol. This protocol includes; (1) CPUE data & analysis, (2) Swept area methods, (3) Spawning potential ratio/data limited stock assessment, (4) Data collection in small-scale fisheries/ NIR-port, (5) Reef fish stock estimation, (6) PUD fish stock estimation, (7) Fish stock estimation with acoustic methods.

Methods of data collection, data management, data analysis to the preparation of a complete report are contained in the protocol. It is hoped that the protocol can be a guide for all parties in need, such as researchers and other fisheries practitioners, in carrying out activities related to fisheries data.