Dar es Salaam, July 3 -- IN the glittering halls of the United Nations Ocean Conference held in Nice, France, global leaders, diplomats, and experts gathered to debate the future of the worlds oceans.

Amidst the polished speeches and diplomatic jargon, one voice rose with the strength and clarity of lived experience, the voice of a Tanzanian woman, Editrudith Lukanga who has made it her lifes mission to fight for the rights of small-scale fishers, especially women.

Ms Lukanga, the Executive Director of the Environmental Management and Economic Development Organisation (EMEDO) based in Mwanza, stood before world leaders with a message that was impossible to ignore “Without women, there are no fish on the table.” Her presence ...