Sub-Saharan Africa suffers from poverty and malnutrition. Fisheries, as a major contributor to primary production in Africa, plays a significant role in combating these problems. In contrast to the marine fisheries of sub-Saharan Africa, catches from inland fisheries are still mainly processed and consumed locally. Therefore, inland fisheries are of particular relevance in the context of food security and development. Until now, however, development assistance to inland fisheries in Africa, and in particular to aquaculture, has not met with the same degree of success as it has in Asia and other parts of the world. One of many reasons for these repeated failures has been and still is the frequently observed neglect of social and cultural aspects of inland fisheries and aquaculture on the part of modern African states as well as of development agencies. In recognition of the above, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) commissioned COFAD GmbH to carry out this study, which argues that a better acknowledgement of traditional resource management and enhancement systems is an essential component of a more appropriate and effective approach to inland fisheries and aquaculture development. The study aims to expand our knowledge base of existing traditional fisheries management and enhancement systems and to improve our understanding of the complexities of resource utilisation. To this end, the study presents an outline of traditional fisheries management and traditional fisheries enhancement systems as well as of modern fisheries enhancement and aquaculture systems. After analysing the potentials and constraints of these systems, conclusions are drawn and formulated into recommendations. Key concepts and definitions are explained and individual examples are presented in boxes within the main text. Two case studies, both undertaken in the context of this study, and a bibliography are provided as annexes.