2.5 MARINE AND COASTAL COMMUNITIES AND ECOSYSTEMS


Table 2.5.1: Global profile of small-and large-scale fisheries Small-scale fisheries


Marine


Number of fishers (millions) 14 38


Number of post-harvest jobs (millions)


Total workforce (millions) Percentage of women


52 36%


Inland 18 38


56 54%


Total 32 76


108 46%


households remains relatively constant globally (Harper et al. 2013).


Across the Pacific region, where fishing is critical to support livelihoods and economies, women collect fish primarily for food. Surplus fish are sold or traded to supplement household incomes. In some villages in Samoa women make up only 18% of fishers, but catch 23% of seafood by weight (Passfield et al. 2001) and provide an estimated 20% of the seafood consumed (Lambeth 2000). In Niue women traditionally catch fish in near-shore ecosystems and are responsible for harvesting marine products. Traditional taboos have restricted them from participating in every sector of fishing activity, especially fishing from boats; women, especially if menstruating, have been believed to bring bad luck if they touch fishing gear or cross over fishing lines. These taboos are slowly disappearing, and women in Niue increasingly fish from small boats with their husbands or friends (Tuara 2000). In South Tarawa, Kiribati, women harvest bivalves, collecting over 1400 tonnes per year from the largest fishery in the area (Lambeth et al. 2014). In Palau, as elsewhere, women’s role as near-shore fishers is especially important during rough weather when men are unable to go out to sea to fish. Fijian women are the most active fishing group in the region, engaged in both subsistence and commercial fisheries. As a result of their activities in both types of fishing, Fijian women have significant knowledge of fisheries and their management (Lambeth et al. 2002).


Among developed countries, Iceland has an unusually important fisheries sector which provides 40% of the country’s export earnings, accounts for more than 12% of its gross domestic product (GDP) and employs nearly 5% of the workforce (Forbes 2015). In Iceland women account for about 7% of commercial boat-based fishers (Figure 2.5.1), unusually assuming all roles from skipper to deckhand (Willson 2014). Those in the commercial fishing sector serve on vessels of all sizes. In most other


Large-scale fisheries Marine 2 7


Inland 1


0.5 9 64% 2 28%


Total


Total 3 8


11 60%


35 84


119 47% Source: World Bank (2012)


developed countries (e.g. Australia, Canada and Norway) when women are commercial fishers on boats, nearly of them work on small, family-owned vessels and they almost always work with their husbands (Willson 2014).


Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing:


Illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing is a serious global problem that results in illegal harvests of millions of tonnes of fish and billions of dollars in revenues being lost to legitimate fishers. It threatens the health of fish populations and marine and coastal ecosystems worldwide, as well as the livelihoods and food security of millions of inhabitants of coastal areas (Hall 2016; Pew Charitable Trusts 2016). An estimated 14-33% of the total global catch consists of IUU fishing, with a value of US$8-19 billion (Borit and Olsen 2012). The real figures are likely to be higher since IUU data, by definition, are scarce. Information on women’s roles in IUU is even scarcer (Kleiber et al. 2014).


Fishing and aquaculture have become global industries employing a large number of migrant workers and others who are vulnerable to trafficking and forced labour (ILO 2013). IUU activities are responsible for severe labour and human rights abuses. When carried out on an industrial scale on the open seas, they rely almost exclusively on labour by men, many of whom have been pressed into indentured labour and held on ships as actual or de facto slaves, often for years without being allowed off the ship (Urbina 2015; ILO 2013). Pirate fishing operations in particular are characterized by some of the worst working conditions, and there are extensive reports of abuse (EJF 2010). Women and girls are subject to human trafficking and forced labour on board these vessels, primarily for sexual exploitation rather than as fishing labourers. Women are also reported to be victims of trafficking in the land-based fish processing sector (ILO 2013).


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