Imani Development

🌊 🎣 𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗟𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗶𝗸𝗮

Fishing has long sustained communities along Lake Tanganyika, but overfishing, climate change, and land degradation are placing this vital ecosystem under strain. In response, the FISH4ACP Alternative Livelihoods initiative in is supporting communities in Mpulungu and Nsumbu to diversify incomes, strengthen resilience, and reduce pressure on fisheries—while building sustainable, market-oriented local economies.

Since May 2025, the programme has engaged 15 cooperatives across eight rural communities, reaching over 400 households with 58% women’s participation. Investments in rice mills, greenhouse seedling tunnels, treadle irrigation pumps, and solar-powered cold storage hubs are creating practical, scalable livelihood opportunities that improve food security, generate income, and empower local communities.

Read more ➡️https://imanidevelopment.com/beyond-fishing-how-fish4acp-is-unlocking-new-livelihoods-on-lake-tanganyika-by-chido-myambo/

Beyond Fishing: How FISH4ACP Is Unlocking New Livelihoods on Lake Tanganyika by Chido Myambo Along the shores of Lake Tanganyika—one of the world’s most important freshwater ecosystems—fishing is more than a livelihood. It sustains nearly half of rural jobs and provides a critical source of food and income for millions. Sadly, this vital system is under growing strain. Overfishing, cl...

𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘𝗦𝗔 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗽𝘁𝘀 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘𝗦𝗔 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗳𝗖𝗙𝗧𝗔

Earlier this month, the COMESA Council of Ministers, during their Extraordinary Meeting, formally adopted the COMESA Strategy for the Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

The strategy, developed in 2024 by Imani Development under the leadership of Dr Nick Charalambides, Francis Mangeni, Steven Karangizi, and Mark Pearson, has since undergone extensive consultations and refinement by the Secretariat to ensure a robust approach to implementation before being presented to the Ministers.

With the benefit of time since the analysis was finalized, we are now able to reflect more objectively on several of the strategy’s key strengths;

🤝 it treats AfCFTA and COMESA as complementary, and addresses overlap directly;

🏗️ it builds on existing COMESA instruments and institutions;

🎯 it focuses on practical implementation issues—coordination, capacity, and sequencing;

🈸 it integrates all actions within COMESA’s own Medium- Term Strategic Plan (MTSP).

One aspect that is perhaps less visible, but important, is the legal analysis. The strategy looks carefully at how AfCFTA obligations interact with the COMESA acquis, including areas of convergence, divergence, and potential duplication (for example in investment frameworks). That in turn informs how implementation is approached in practice.

Congratulations to christopher onyango and the COMESA team!

Read more➡️ https://www.comesa.int/press-release-9th-extraordinary-meeting-of-the-comesa-council-of-ministers-2-april-2026-virtual/