Title
Valuing the Contributions of Fijian Fishers and Traders of Indian Descent to Small-Scale Fisheries in Fiji
Author(s)
Y. Nand; S. Mangubhai; R. Audh; N. Bhan; A. Kumar
Published
2021
Abstract
Fijians of Indian decent (or Indo-Fijians) are the second largest ethnic group in Fiji, making up 37.5% of Fiji’s population. Many of them are descendants of Indian labourers who came to Fiji during the British colonial rule under the indenture system between 1869 to 1916. There is remarkably very little documented on the marine resource-related economic specialisation of different ethnic groups, especially in the fisheries sector. To address this gap, the Wildlife Conservation Society led a study to document the critical role and contribution of the Indo-Fijian fishers and traders to small-scale fisheries in Fiji. The study also examined their dependence on fisheries, the challenges they face, their access to resources (including financial, information), and engagement in fisheries management.
A total of 173 fisheries actors were interviewed from February to April 2019 that comprised of independent fishers, boat owners, crew members and traders from the towns in Ba, Tavua and Rakiraki on Viti Levu and Labasa and Savusavu on Vanua Levu. These towns were selected because some of the highest concentration of Indo-Fijian fishers and traders reside and operate from these centers. For this report independent fishers, boat owners and crew members were collectively referred to as ‘fishers’.
The key findings of this study were fisheries actors main motivation for fishing or fish trading was income and food. Many had investments in the sector spanning (on average) three decades for fishers, and two decades for traders. Indo-Fijians fishers are mostly men, with women preferring to be involved in fish trade and sales. A large majority of fisheries actors were self-employed while specific groups such as crew members worked for a boat owner or a company; some independent fishers also worked for other companies. The main habitats fishers targeted were coral reefs and oceanic habitats, followed by deepsea slopes (targetted for deepwater snapper and groupers). Some fishers targetted mangrove and nearshore areas for mud crabs, reef crabs and other invertebrates. Most seafood was traded live or frozen, with little investments in post-harvest processing.
For 84.4% of fisheries actors, fishing and fish trading was the most important livelihood source, while 6.2% stated farming was their most important livelihood source and fishing was an additional income source. About 88% fishers and more than half of the traders stated that fishing and fish trading provided for almost all their financial needs. A large majority of fisheries actors still depended on fisheries as their their only source of livelihood. However, when asked about whether fishing and fish trading provided a stable livelihood, more than half of boat owners (64.0%), independent fishers (59.6%), crew members (50.9%) and traders (50.0%) stated it was a stable livelihood source. Just under half (45.7%) of fisheries actors earned less than $5000 a year, while another 31.2% earned between $5000–10,000 annually. Only 0.6% of fisheries actors earned the higher range ($50,000–75,000) annually, while 4.0% earned between $30,000–40,000 annually. Those with low income struggled to access to financial support, and many fishers depended on their employers, family members and relatives, friends and money lenders for loans. Only 36.4% of fisheries actors stated they had been successful in getting formal loans, while 63.6% stated they had not been successful or had never applied for a loan. Crew members reported the highest percentage of unsuccessful loan applications (76.8%) compared to traders who reported the highest percentage of successful applications (64.7%).
When asked how they see the fish population overtime, fishers largely stated that fish stocks were declining (70.8%) or rapidly declining (10.2%), while some fishers (17.0%) perceived fish stocks as stable or increasing (1.5%). The reasons given for the decline in fish stocks were: climate change (34.5%), cyclones (22.3%), destructive fishing practices (18.7%), habitat damage (11.5%), an act of god (2.2%), or too many fishers allowed to fish in one fishing ground (0.7%). About 10.1%, who stated that fish stocks were declining did not know the reasons for the decline.
Similar to all commercial fishers, Indo-Fijian fishers must apply for fishing permits to access state waters or customary fishing grounds. Many (>70%) were aware of tabu areas within customary fishing grounds or stated it was listed on their fishing licences. The majority (89.9%) stated they had good relations with the iTaukei communities with traditional rights to inshore fishing grounds. The study found that some fishers have to negotiate with community leaders and pay about $100–500 and in rare cases up to $3000 annually to access traditional fishing grounds. Some fishers stated that they were asked for a payment in return for consent to use fishing grounds, while some agreed to pay out of a wish to support the communities. For fishing grounds where payments were requested, fishers were asked to make in-kind payments, including fish worth the amount requested, kava, food items, and fishing gear. If the fishers were not able to make the payment, some communities do not allow them to fish.
Overall, some of the challenges fishers faced included shortage of ice, availability of fishing bait, road and landing sites infrastructure, purchasing and maintenance of boats, and not being able to afford engine and fishing gear given their low income from fishing. They also raised concerns about the challenges of the current boat and fishing licensing systems, and the depletion of fisheries resources (i.e., fish sizes and volumes) resulting from the high number of fishers accessing the same fishing grounds. Furthermore, some fishers explained unpredictable weather conditions can severely reduce the number of fishing trips a fisher can do monthly, which can affect their income.
Indo-Fijian fisheries actors play an important in Fiji’s small-scale fisheries sector and contribute significantly to the national economy. The authors hope this baseline study will inspire others to expand their investments to engage and include all ethnic groups that engage in fisheries. The long-term sustainability of Fiji’s fisheries will depend on the engagement of all those who are dependent on the sector for food and livelihoods.
Additional Notes
Report No. 01/21
Full Citation
Nand, Y., S. Mangubhai, R. Audh, N. Bhan, and A. Kumar (2021). Valuing the Contributions of Fijian Fishers and Traders of Indian Descent to Small-Scale Fisheries in Fiji. Report No. 01/21. Suva, Fiji: Wildlife Conservation Society, Fiji, 1-45.
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