Operationalizing Rights-Based Fishery Management through Co-Managed Fish Breeding Areas: Evidence from Uganda’s Inland Lake Systems

Rights-based fishery management (RBFM) and co-management are increasingly promoted as solutions to governance failures in small-scale inland fisheries, yet empirical evidence linking ecological performance to governance design remains limited. This study examines how Fish Breeding Areas (FBAs) can function as practical, rights-based management units within co-managed inland fisheries, drawing evidence from Uganda’s Lakes Edward–George–Kazinga Channel and Kyoga–Kwania systems. Using an ecosystem-based and participatory research framework, the study combined community-led mapping, GIS spatial analysis, water quality assessment, experimental gillnet surveys, and stakeholder consultations to identify, validate, and evaluate FBAs as reproductive refugia. Ecological indicators (habitat structure, water quality, spawning activity, recruitment signals) were integrated with governance indicators, including local ecological knowledge, access arrangements, community perceptions of legitimacy and compliance. Results show that wetlands, river mouths, sheltered bays, and floodplain systems constitute highly productive breeding habitats for key commercial species (Oreochromis niloticus, Clarias gariepinus, Bagrus docmac and haplochromines), underpinning basin-wide fish recruitment and fisheries productivity. Kasese District accounted for over 70% of breeding habitat in the Edward–George system, while large floodplain FBAs in the Kyoga–Kwania system function as critical connectivity nodes sustaining regional fisheries. Despite increasing anthropogenic pressures, most FBAs exhibited ecological conditions consistent with active reproduction. Crucially, stakeholder engagement revealed strong community support for FBA protection where management rights, access rules, and benefit-sharing mechanisms are clearly defined and locally enforced. FBAs therefore emerge not merely as conservation tools but as governance assets capable of aligning ecological sustainability with economic incentives and social legitimacy. The study concludes that legally recognized, co-managed FBAs offer a scalable pathway for operationalizing RBFM in inland fisheries, delivering ecological resilience, reduced enforcement costs, and improved livelihood outcomes. These findings provide actionable lessons for rights-based fisheries reforms across data-limited inland systems globally.