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BSc in Fisheries Science,University Of Jaffna,Sri Lanka.

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Outline• Introduction• The factors discourage• Women’s role in small scale

fisheries• Women’s role in seafood

processing industry• Women’s role in Aquaculture• Women’s role in resource

management and decision making

• Conclusion

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Women’s involvement in fisheries seem to be similar all the world over

• In the world’s two major fish producing countries, China and India, women represent respectively 21% and 24% of all fishers and fish farmers

• It has been estimated that more than 50 million women are engaged in fisheries throughout the world

• WHY????

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Reasons for participation• Poverty• Husband regular consumer of liquor &

without employment• Support their men• Widow• Less opportunities of employment• Descendant of fishing family• Less education

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Role

Small scale

aquaculture

Seafood industry

Decision making

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Importance of women participation in small scale

fishery• Improvement in fish handling practices and equipment

• Training in better preservation methods improving the hygienic quality of products

• Improvements to the traditional technology of fish processing

• Training in the setting up of cooperatives

• Building of a sound infrastructure

• Provision of financial assistance

• Improved organization of raw material supplies

• Development of appropriate intermediate technology for net making.

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Net mending & Preparation

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CleaningSorting

Karainagar

Karainagar

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Drying

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Marketing

Pannai market

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Fishing by hand

Before the fishing Flashing mud

Hand fishing in turbid water

Catch

Source : Women’s fishing and socio-economic status of poor fishing village, Naguleliya Sri Lanka. Aruna Dissanayake

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Beach seine fishing

Pulling netCollecting fishTransporting fish

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Profile Of A Heroine:The 69-Year-Old Talaimannar Fisherwoman Breaking Social BoundariesDaya neththasinha

To support her family, Helen Jasitha Fernando took up fishing, even though she could not swim. Close to 70 now, Fernando will keep fishing – and for a worthy reason.25.07.2016  |  MANNAR

http://thecatamaran.org/2016/07/25/the-69-year-old-talaimannar-fisherwoman-breaking-social-boundaries/

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• Newly introduced technology can affect the present activities of women. For example, technologically advanced fish processing with ice plants and transportation systems can eliminate small-scale fish processing and trading that are now being carried out by women

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Women’s role in seafood processing

• The emergence of shrimp processing during the late 1980s opened up new avenues for women as wage earners.

• younger, educated women, have been drawn into paid work• In Sri Lankan seafood processing firms, more than 90% of

the plant workers are women. • The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (2003) recorded that the

overall female participation in the labor force is 32.5% in Sri Lanka.

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Occupation groups

Number of females employees

Male: Female

Laborers(prawn processing)

1535 2:10

Supervisors 45 10:2

Quality controllers

4 10:5

administrators 21 10:5

directors 6 10:2

CEOs 1 100:1

Ratio between men and women of different occupations in a processing plantSource: Survey findings, March/April, 2004

KMK

TSF

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Women’s role in aquaculture• The tasks of looking after a pond , preparing fish feed are usually

relegated to women, while men are engaged in other aspects of farming, such as ploughing the land, digging the drains and repairing the hedges.

• Women have also assumed a leading role in the rapid growth of aquaculture (fish, shrimps, mussel, seaweed, crab fattening), with their participation along the aquaculture value chains (production, transforming, and marketing) higher than in capture fisheries.

• In sri lanka, 30% of those engaged in the production and breeding of ornamental fish are women (fao 2012). 

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Seaweed culture

Crab fattening

Vallaipaadu, Mannar

Source: Uthayan , Saktheena.G, 23/10/2016

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Women’s role in resource management & decision making

• In Sri Lanka women are poorly represented and seldom included in decision-making processes with regard to fishery and resource management in particular.

• Few women participate in the official discourse on the fisheries, and it seems that women in fisheries lack access to physical and capital resources, to decision-making and leadership positions, to training and formal education.

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Gender Equality• Women make up an important part of the fishing sector, particularly in small-

scale fisheries, and increasingly in capture fishing and other activities. By acknowledging the role they play, better management and development strategies and interventions can be developed that address all of the activities in the sector, not just those carried out by men.

• Women make significant contributions to fishery-related activities other than fishing. They play the major role in processing fish and fishery products, as well as in marketing. Although these roles are often very different to those of men, they are integral parts of the industry. Ignoring these activities means ignoring a large portion of the sector.

• The different work done by women generates different kinds of knowledge.

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• The under-representation of women in decision-making limits the use of their expertise and knowledge.

• The number of women holding managerial posts with decision- making powers is very low. Many women in fisheries have low self-esteem, possibly reflecting social values in those settings that hold men to be superior. This reduces women’s involvement and limits the ability for women to be empowered and contribute to the fullest of their capacity.

• Women don’t usually participate in meetings held by fishermen’s organizations. Most fishing projects are male-oriented, and women’s participation is limited with respect to planning, programming and management. As a result, consideration of women’s knowledge and needs is limited, which ultimately limits the effectiveness of such plans and programmes, etc.

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Policies & Programms• Increasing awareness of gender issues and ensuring that

approaches improve the quality of life for women in fisheries.  • Gathering information and developing research programmes

that systematically tackle gender issues and women’s participation and integration in fisheries development.

• Recognizing the important role that women play in guaranteeing household food security and well-being.

• Developing marketing by providing further support in different areas such as improving women’s access to markets and storage of fish. Although we must be aware that successful projects may increase male migration into an area, to the detriment of women fishers.

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• Facilitating access to fish resources. Rights, access and control of resources are central to successful fisheries development. However, women’s entitlements are frequently ignored. This situation must be addressed explicitly in order for the full potential of women’s contributions to be realized.

• Encouraging the participation of women and women’s groups in decision-making processes at both community level and government level.

• Providing appropriate training, designed to target women in fisheries. It’s important to ensure that training is accessible to women so that they can improve their productivity and the quality of their products.

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Conclusion

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References

Elson, Diane (1992). Male bias in structural adjustment, in Women and adjustment policies in the Third World, Macmillan.

FAO (1995). Women, agriculture and rural development: National sectoral report for the Philippines, prepared under the auspices of FAO's programme of assistance in support of rural women in preparation of the Fourth World Conference of Women, FAO, Rome.

Goetz, Anne Marie (1997). Introduction: Getting institutions right for women in development, In Anne Marie Goetz (ed.) Getting institutions right for women in development, Zed Books, London.

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