Small-scale fisheries: assessing their contribution to rural livelihoods in developing countries

The contributions of small-scale fisheries are often interlinked and interdependent. This paper provides a critical overview of the contribution of small-scale fisheries to the livelihoods of rural populations in developing countries.

The document points that the importance of this sector appears to be relatively small when compared to major sectors (e.g. agriculture), yet it finds that:

• the contribution of small-scale fisheries seems more than simply the sum of its economic, social, environmental, food security and poverty alleviation contributions
• some of the major contributions to small-scale fisheries result from the synergies between various domains particularly economic and social aspects
• inland and coastal small-scale fisheries can play an important role with respect to key development issues such as poverty alleviation, food security and pro-poor growth
• however, assessing the global contribution and importance of small-scale fisheries is not straightforward, and one of the greatest limiting factors is the lack of data
• in addition, the exact role of the sector will still vary greatly, depending on a series of contextual factors (e.g. resource status and the households’ access to financial facilities)

• small-scale fisheries in developing countries are much more crucially needed to mitigate economic uncertainty and prevent negative poverty impacts than to support or generate economic growth
• as a result, stressing the safety net role of the sector should remain central if the focus is to be on the very poor
• there is an urgent need to improve our understanding of the various mechanisms through which small-scale fisheries do participate to poverty alleviation
• otherwise, it will remain extremely difficult to raise the profile of small-scale fisheries and to attract the attention and support of decision-makers and donors