Every March 8, the world celebrates International Women’s Day. And the UN has declared the year 2022 as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture (IYAFA 2022). To talk about this celebration and the role of women in African artisanal fisheries, we interviewed Ms. Aina Liantsoa RANDRIANANTOANDRO, fish post-harvest specialist at the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division of FAO Rome. She is also currently preparing her Ph.D. thesis on the links between gender equality, technology adoption, and sustainable development in small-scale fisheries in Sub-Saharan Africa
“On the occasion of this International Women’s Day, I address all women in the artisanal fisheries and aquaculture sector: You work at a small–scale level, but your contribution to the sustainable development of the sector is big“.
What is the importance of small-scale fisheries in Africa today?
In Africa, the small-scale fisheries sector is an important contributor not only to the continent’s economy and livelihoods but also to food security and nutrition. 66% of the total catch in Africa comes from small-scale fisheries, with inland fisheries representing half of this catch.
In 2010, it was estimated that artisanal fisheries generated more than 3 million tons of catches in marine waters for a total value of 4.8 billion dollars. In 2014, the sector produced an estimated value added of more than 24 billion dollars, representing 1.26% of the GDP of all African countries.
In addition, small-scale fisheries contribute significantly to the economy as a source of employment.
In 2011, an estimated 10 million Africans depended on small-scale fisheries as their primary livelihood, and another 90 million depended on fishing as part of a diversified livelihood strategy. To a large extent, the high level of employment in the artisanal fisheries sector is due to the limited opportunities for communities to have an alternative income-generating activity. Small-scale fisheries are also crucial to the food security of over 200 million Africans.
Fish is a high-quality food that provides many essential nutrients, and it also provides protein that can be absorbed more quickly than vegetable protein. Fish accounts for more than one-fifth of the protein intake of the African region south of the Sahara.
Its importance in the diet of populations is thus considerable, especially among the poorest populations, given its relatively low price. If I give you concrete examples: in Sierra Leone, fish represents about 80% of the animal protein supply; in Senegal, this figure is 75%, and in Ghana, it is 60%.
What are the issues and challenges of the artisanal fisheries sector in Africa?
Despite its enormous contribution, artisanal or small-scale fisheries are generally underestimated in their potential for sustainable development. The sector faces many challenges and constraints that hinder its growth and exacerbate poverty among the most vulnerable communities.
Many artisanal fisheries communities are located in remote areas and live in poor living and working conditions. They generally have limited access to basic education, health and service infrastructure, in addition to low incomes.
Overexploitation of resources and threats to habitats and ecosystems are at the source of many conflicts between actors in the value chain, both artisanal and industrial. They are also a key factor of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Environmental degradation, climate change vagaries, natural and man-made disasters aggravate this situation, in particular due to the increasing scarcity of fishery resources.
Overall, the lack of data on small-scale fisheries also has a negative impact on the sector. The role of artisanal fisheries is not sufficiently taken into account in policies at the national or regional level, as the actors of the value chain are marginalized or completely ignored in official statistics. At the top of the list of marginalized and ignored actors are women.
We know that women hold a primordial place in the African artisanal fisheries, despite the fact that their importance in the sector is not duly recognized…
Women are an important pillar of the African artisanal fisheries sector. They are at the heart of the value chains from the canoe to the market. There are women who pre-finance the fish trip, and are present during the landings.
In countries like Ghana, many women own boats, and some even provide loans to male fishers to invest in boats or fishing equipment. But it is true that women are more actively involved in downstream activities, such as post-harvest handling, processing, packaging or marketing, where they represent on average 58% of actors.
In fishermen’s families, the role of women is crucial in marketing because they are often the only distributors of fish, which means that the fisherman depends on the woman to convert the fish into money to buy other foods and various necessities.
Nevertheless, gender discrimination and inequalities remain significant in African societies. Due to social rules, gender roles, political speech, religion, and prejudice, men and women do not have equal access to and power over resources, resulting in unequal opportunities for women.
These inequalities inevitably impact the socio-economic dynamics of the continent and limit the potential of the fishing sector. In many fishing communities, women face common constraints regarding limited access to financial services and lack of control over their work and income compared to their male counterparts.
Due to the burden of domestic work and childcare, they are limited in their accumulation of capital and experience and in their opportunities to travel, network, or access more profitable markets. Their fishing activities are traditionally seen as an extension of domestic work, with most of the work done in or near home.
There are many similar examples across the continent, where women’s voices are also noticeably absent from most levels of decision-making, from local organizations to government institutions. This leads to an undervaluing of women’s contribution to the sector, resulting in their absence from most data collection, the underpaid or unpaid nature of their work, and numerous gender-related constraints on their access to services and markets.
Women in artisanal fisheries play an essential role throughout the seafood value chain. But they work in difficult conditions. In your opinion, what are the priorities to improve their living and working conditions?
There are two main dimensions of inequality that lead to gender-related constraints in African artisanal fisheries. The first dimension refers to women’s limited access to productive resources (assets, fisheries extension services, financial services, etc.).
The second dimension refers to limited power and control over resources and benefits and the ability to make autonomous decisions about their use. These two dimensions make women work in difficult conditions, as you say.
Therefore, when development institutions such as the FAO intervene in the African artisanal fisheries sector and in particular in the promotion of the role of women, one of the main recommendations concerns the implementation of awareness-raising and training activities of all kinds.
These can be programs on one or more aspects of artisanal fisheries, such as training in good fish handling practices, training in fish processing, packaging and storage, training in marketing or entrepreneurship, or training in cooperative organization.
At the same time, when it comes to the area of post-capture in African artisanal fisheries, FAO is also very active in the dissemination of improved fish processing technologies, particularly for drying and smoking. These aim to improve the working conditions of these women, increase their income and improve their livelihoods and those of their families, and thus strengthen their contribution to the sustainable development of the sector.
You talk about improved technologies that help improve the conditions of women in post-harvest. In Africa, we see the FAO FTT ovens becoming more popular among women fish processors. Can you tell us a bit more about these ovens?
Yes, the FTT or FAO-Thiaroye processing ovens were first developed by FAO in 2008 in collaboration with the National Training Center for Fisheries and Aquaculture Technicians of Senegal. The FTT is an innovative drying and smoking technology developed from an existing first generation improved smoker – for example a Banda, a Chorkor or an Altona, to which specific equipments are added to improve its performance and the quality of the finished products. In brief, an existing smoker is supplemented with an ember furnace, a fat collection plate, and an indirect smoke generator.
The combination significantly reduces the level of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the finished products and improves the quality because the products no longer have that blackish appearance due to the mixture of fat, ash and smoke deposits. Women fish processors who have used the FTT say they are satisfied because the oven has significantly reduced their exposure to heat, smoke and burns.
Their fuel consumption is also reduced, with smoking times typically ranging from 3 to 5 hours with the FTT, compared to 12 to 24 hours with traditional ovens. Depending on the model, an FTT oven can also smoke up to 100 kg of fish per session. In some countries, FTT ovens have been the source of a real revolution amongst women fish processing communities.
In Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, at the Abobodoumé site, women have been able to produce value-added fish products, such as sausages, fish croquettes and fish fillings. They have also learned to better organize themselves into cooperatives, and have developed other activities on their processing site that allow them to increase their income.
Since 2008, FAO has been working on the dissemination of these FTT ovens on the African continent and elsewhere. Whenever possible, we include this activity as a component of our projects and programs on the continent. We are also very open to partner with other development institutions and international organizations – such as the World Bank, IFAD, and UNIDO to name a few – in these efforts to disseminate FTT ovens.
Every March 8th, the world celebrates International Women’s Day. And the UN has declared the year 2022 as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture (IYFA 2022). What do you think should be the special feature of this years’ March 8th celebration?
Indeed, the UN has declared the year 2022 as the International Year of Small-scale Fisheries and Aquaculture, and FAO has been designated to be the lead agency to coordinate the celebration of this year in collaboration with other organizations of the United Nations system.
As a reminder, the objective of the celebration is twofold. Firstly, it aims to draw the world’s attention to the role that workers in the artisanal fisheries and aquaculture sector play in food security and nutrition, poverty eradication, and the sustainable use of natural resources.
Secondly, this celebration is also an opportunity to strengthen the dialogue between the different actors and stakeholders, and in particular to increase the visibility of small-scale producers and enable them to better participate in the decision-making processes that affect their activities and their daily lives.
The celebration of International Women’s Day this year could thus further emphasize the centrality of women in the small-scale fisheries and aquaculture sector to empower them to act for sustainable development. Here, I would like to recall the slogan of IYAFA, which is ‘Small in scale, big in value’.
On the occasion of this International Women’s Day, I therefore address all women in the artisanal fisheries and aquaculture sector: You work at a small-scale level, but your value in the sustainable development of the sector is big. I would also like to vigorously reiterate this statement to all stakeholders, at the national, regional and international levels: women are crucial to achieving sustainable fisheries and aquaculture; it is our responsibility to recognize and value their role through each link of the sector’s value chains.
Interview conducted by Aliou DIALLO
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