FLAG Factsheet
The FLAG area covers the 342km coastline of Tenerife which varies from rocky cliffs to low coastline and beaches. Tenerife is very much geared around tourism but there are many activities that utilise the island’s coast and marine space. Employment levels are good in the coastal area and fishing and aquaculture account for 3.4% of the island’s total employment and around 2% of its GDP.
Ten fishing organisations support the 500 small-scale fishermen working in Tenerife with a combined annual catch of 6 180 tonnes, worth around €14.3M. Two marine aquaculture farms produce a further 1 240 tonnes of fish (mainly Sea Bass and Sea Bream) for a value of approximately €4.5M. On top of professional fisheries, there are 35 000 leisure fishing licenses in Tenerife which account for an additional 574 tonnes a year (an average of 14.3 kilos per license).
Reconciling tourism with professional fisheries, encouraging more youth and women to enter the sector and improving the quality and value of local fisheries products are among the challenges that the FLAG aims to address.
Tenerife boasts 58 protected areas, covering over 50% of the island. These include nature reserves, national parks and various types of Natura 2000 protected areas, amongst others.
The FLAG’s strategy focuses on supporting:
Regional
There is a FLAG and a LEADER LAG (AIDER) in Tnerife, with the AIDER operating inland and the FLAG covering the coastline up to appoximately 400 metres from the sea. The two groups are separate organizations and while no formal coordination is in place there is a small overkap of public sector members on the FLAG and LAG boards.
The FLAG has a total of 27 members, including the local fishing organisation, the town halls in the FLAG area, environmental NGOs, aquaculture producers and surf associations.