Fish-WIKS News

On November 24-26 the Assembly of First Nations hosted a national Fisheries Protection Program/Policy meeting in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The purpose of this meeting was to provide First Nations with a technical overview of the Fisheries Protection Provisions of the Fisheries Act across a range of areas including but not limited to Aquatic Invasive Species, Oceans and Species at Risk.

Officials from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans national and regional offices were also on hand to provide information on legislative mandates, roles, responsibilities, First Nations engagement activities and interactions with other programs and key contacts. Attendees to the meeting included First Nations Chiefs and fisheries technicians as well as community representatives.

The event provided an ideal forum for Fish-WIKS members to present on project activities to date from each of the respective regions (East Coast, Inland and West Coast) and to obtain valuable feedback from First Nations fisheries technicians from across Canada.  The response to the information shared about Fish-WIKS and its anticipated outcomes was very positive with the project’s findings promising considerable value to First Nations.