Launching into a new future
AngelFish Deployment
We understand that no two small-scale fishing communities are the same. From experience, we know that without the direct involvement of fishers and their families, no technology adoption can be successful. The AngelFish deployment philosophy is therefore built on three key pillars: community-driven buy-in, local technical support and engaged government stakeholders.
Community Buy-in
We acknowledge the natural resistance to being tracked. It rubs against our basic need for freedom and for small-scale fishers there is the additional fear of having their traditional fishing grounds revealed to others.
Resistance from small-scale fishers to adopt tracking technologies is a known challenge - one we are very sensitive to. The traditional approach of using technology and regulatory enforcement is generally not effective. It remains a complex challenge that can only be resolved through a multifaceted approach.
Core to our adoption strategy is acceptance by the broader small-scale fishing community, often confronted by the socio-economic consequences of lives tragically lost at sea, small margins on their catches and changing local fishing patterns. Working with local organisations and the community via workshops and sensitisation campaigns, we aim to make the community central to embracing our technology.
Local Support Services
Our technology is inherently used in very harsh environments, often in remote areas. As even the most robust product can sometimes fail, cost-effective support of units remains a key item which we address in our deployment strategy.
We have verified through years of field trials that our products are extremely robust and easy to install to a wheelhouse wall, a mast or a simple wooden/plastic pole. From a technology perspective we have ensured that the AngelFish can be easily configured using only a smartphone or laptop loaded with our intuitive software.
This allows us to make use of local service providers to train fishermen in the use of the AngelFish and to ensure support is nearby and that language barriers will not be a challenge. As each AngelFish unit’s health is constantly monitored remotely, a non-optimal unit can easily be identified and replaced long before it fails - therefore with minimum disruption to tracking, or safety monitoring.
Governmental Stakeholders
Governments of coastal states are increasingly under pressure to better monitor the activities of their small-scale fishing communities. This is driven by the desire to improve the safety of life at sea and economic livelihoods, as well as protecting the nation’s marine resource interests within their EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone).
We recognise the complexity faced by government stakeholders as safety and economic mandates are often distributed across various different ministries or departments, rendering a holistic approach extremely difficult to implement. This is further complicated when these issues are often politicised.
It is therefore a critical facet of our deployment process to actively involve the various governmental stakeholders. Through workshops and field trials we aim to sensitise them to appreciate that only a community-centred approach combined with supportive legislation can deliver a sustainable solution.
