In welcoming the participants of the Tenure and Fishing Rights 2015, Eng Chea San, Director General of Fisheries Administration, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Cambodia, hoped the Conference would allow different groups to share their experiences to arrive at a collective understanding of rights regimes to benefit fishing communities. Highlighting the case of Cambodia, he observed how collective action for mutual benefits was needed to empower fishing communities and to ensure fish for present and future consumption. The community fisheries approach of Cambodia – an approach that was based on upholding mutual responsibilities for sustainable use of fishery resources – was instrumental in eliminating private ownership and in replacing it with collective ownership, he said.
