an Eldis Resource
Values of inland fisheries in the Mekong river basin
Can inland fishing be sustained in the Mekong River Basin?
Authors:
E. Baran; T. Jantunen; C., K. Chong
Publisher:
The WorldFish Center, 2007
Asia has the most productive inland fisheries in the world. The fishery sector contributes significantly to the national economies of the region. Inland fisheries also improve food security by providing a source of protein and a livelihood for millions of people in this part of the world, especially the rural poor. However, increasing competition for water resources, unregulated fishing and high population growth in riparian countries of major river basins have increased pressure on these resources and contributed to increasing threats to fisheries production.
This report provides information on the biological, economic, social and cultural values of river fisheries in the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB), and identifies the main impacts of environmental change on these values.
Participatory rural appraisal results show that all of the above challenges and threats to inland fisheries have already reduced the livelihood base of poor people. It has also made them more vulnerable to hazards from drought and flooding, natural declines of the fish population, inadequate market access and high population growth.
The study discusses that in terms of pressing issues, access to fisheries and threats to aquatic resources come after personal and communal poverty issues such as lack of land for farming rice and crop pests. The Greater Mekong inland fisheries are exceptionally important by global standards, with Cambodian fisheries the most intensively fished worldwide in terms of catch per person. These aquatic resources are crucial to the income, livelihood, and very subsistence of the population; they provide the last resort of security for the poorest people, but are also important to wealthier groups in society. The importance of the fisheries in the Lower Mekong is not, however, reflected in the level of attention paid to it by the scientific community and governments. Aquatic resources suffer a shortfall in research initiatives, and this leads in turn to a lack of recognition of the importance of fisheries to food security and national economies.
More generally, the report recommends that sound management of aquatic resources requires a balanced four-fold strategy: improved valuation of natural resources, protection and management of wild resources, aquaculture improvement, and better policies and governance.
