Fishing is a way of life along the coastlines of the Republic of Mauritius, an Island State comprising of mainland Mauritius and a number of outer islands, the island of Rodrigues being the next largest one. However, overfishing, climate change, insufficient measures to regulate marine activities and lack of enforcement are the main causes in the decline of marine species and subsequently incomes associated with artisanal fishing in Mauritius. Octopus cyanea is native to Mauritius and is the most common species of octopus fished in the Indian Ocean waters. It represents the majority of the commercial production of octopus in Mauritius. Unfortunately, its population has not been spared from the above mentioned threats. Despite the regulations governing the octopus`s fishery, a significant decline in this precious commodity has been noted in the Mauritian lagoon over the last 10 years. This trend is not only due to lack of compliance with existing laws but also due to little knowledge and information that local people have about the octopus`s life cycle. In addition, regulations that cover this type of fishing are no longer sufficient and appropriate to ensure the sustainability of our marine resources. As a result, the main octopus`s collectors have expanded their range by fishing all over the lagoons, thus leading to rapid exploitation of octopus and a drastic decrease in catch.

In this context, EcoMode Society (EMS) proposed to implement the national awareness campaign with support from the 3 other above NGOs (Reef Conervation, Eco-Sud and MMCS). The FAO/Smartfish/IOC committed its support to the tune of around Rs 4M (USD 113,000) to cover the design and production of national communication material and activities and the sensitization sessions in the specific 2015 pilot region by the MMCS. Financial support was requested from the GEF SGP to support the sensitization sessions in the other regions by the other 3 NGOs through EcoMode Society. The targeted villages for the project are mainly located close to the lagoon and the awareness campaign is addressed to the coastal village communities composed of fishermen, traders (banyans), and the community at large, including women and youths. Selection of villages was based on those having biggest records of catch. We noted that not all fishers are dependent on octopus. In fact, most of them carry out fishing activities outside the lagoon and collect octopus on a less frequent basis. Only a small group of fishers relying solely on octopus was identified. Also, not all fishers have a license. Sometimes amateur or occasional fishers also fish for octopus. This diversity of actors justified the holding of a targeted awareness campaign. It allowed them to deepen their knowledge of the cephalopod and its lifecycle, the identification of male and female, the minimum allowed catch size, the authorized techniques and, finally, to better understand and accept the interests of the national closure. The main aim was not only for coastal communities to experience an increase in their octopus catch but also for them to be able to manage their own octopus`s fishery in a sustainable manner in the future.