The Fishing Safari is an innovative project that directly addresses the challenges of fishing communities. Fishermen go fishing into deep sea at night and during the day they sell their catch, steal some sleep, mend their nets and do odd jobs until it’s time to fish again. They also have the off-season to worry about when they cannot fish and are strapped for income.

Based on the principles of eco-tourism, this initiative gives tourists a hands-on experience of the boats, the sea, the fishing experience, the living conditions and even the food habits of a fisherman. The pilot project is currently functional in the fishing village of Kokilamedu which is 5 km south of the popular tourist temple–town called Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu.

Kokilamedu and Acts of Mercy have been closely connected since the Tsunami devastated the village in December 2004. AOM has been working with the 100 resident families to empower the entire community.

The Fishing Safari addresses 2 main challenges:

School Education: Normally, a fisherman does not envision
his children studying beyond basic schooling due to financial
restrictions. Also the older children start working in the fishing
business to generate more income for the family. The Fishing
Safari provides an alternative income source for the fishermen which can be directly allocated as educational funds for the children.