Evaluation of the Conservation and Management Program of the Arrecife Alacranes National Park from the Perspective of Management of Fishery Resources

Abstract

The evaluation of the effectiveness of Protected Natural Areas represents a learning process aimed at reinforcing, emphasizing the design and fulfillment of the committed actions. This article addresses the case of the Arrecife Alacranes National Park (PNAA, by its initials in Spanish), which has had a Conservation and Management Program (PCyM, by its initials in Spanish) since 2007 that to date has not been evaluated or updated. The objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of the PCyM on the management of fisheries in the PNAA and identify the main administrative problems. The evaluation covers 54 actions and ten years of operation of the PNAA, recovered from primary and secondary sources in four stages. The results indicate that 55.6 % of the analyzed actions are from the utilization policy. The critical points of the PNAA were identified, especially the lack of continuity of the proposed actions, which leads to the low effectiveness of the direct conservation policy. Likewise, the reduction of 11 % of the total budget is an obstacle that the administration must face in the management of fisheries. We conclude that efforts should be directed to the Management and Restoration Subprogram, both related to fishing activity and governance.