WorldFish Digital Repository
WorldFish research is regarded as international public goods, and we are committed to the widespread dissemination of all our information products. One of the organizational objectives of WorldFish is to make all of its products open. This is in line with both the Center’s Research Data Management and Open Access Policy and the CGIAR Open Access and Data Management Policy. Opening our research, including publications, data and tools, ensures that more people can read and apply our research findings, thereby increasing the efficiency, reach and impact of our work.
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Recent Submissions
Climate change and its’ associated weather variabilities and extremes are posing significant risks to aquaculture productivity, particularly in the coastal regions of Bangladesh. Concurrently, the increasing population and shifting consumption patterns are driving higher demand for aquacultural products. This study investigates the impact of floods, heavy rainfall, tidal surges, high temperatures, droughts, erratic rainfall, and water quality parameters (Dissolved Oxygen, ammonia, pH) on investments in “hard” assets, such as specific fish-farm equipment (aquaculture nets, fish cages, thermometers, irrigation pumps), to enhance climate resilience. Additionally, the study explores “soft” investments in information services that provide advanced forecasts on monsoon onset, heavy rainfall, dry spells, high temperature and cold spells. The results indicate that the level of investment in climate-smart aquaculture is currently influenced by climate stresses, investment capacity (farm size, family size), aquaculture system characteristics (pond size and depth, type of fish, aggregate yields), and market-related factors (proximity to roads and markets). In the context of climate-informed decision-making, forecast-based advisory services can facilitate the transition to climate-smart aquaculture. However, the benefits of the information services are often linked to substantial investments in hard infrastructure that ensure the effective utilization of climate information and advisory services. This absence of accessible climate information services and the capacity to invest in climate smart equipment that makes the information actionable, hinder the transition to climate smart aquaculture by smallholder farmers and hence threaten their livelihood and nutritional security.
Egypt has experienced a significant shift in fish production in recent decades, with 79% coming from aquaculture by 2021. However, the impact of this shift on consumer preferences has not been studied, leaving a knowledge gap when developing policies and marketing strategies. This study aimed to identify factors influencing consumer preferences for wild-caught and farmed fish in Egypt and the reasons for these preferences. A survey was conducted among participants (n = 1,100), and data were analyzed using descriptive and binary logistic regression analyses. The findings revealed that Egyptian consumers prefer wild-caught fish, perceiving them to have superior taste, health benefits, and nutritional value compared to farmed fish. These reasons directly influenced consumer preference for wild-caught fish, as evidenced by the statistically significant results. Interestingly, demographic and economic factors, fish consumption frequency, and sources did not significantly impact consumer preferences. Understanding these factors allows for marketing strategies that positively shape consumer behavior and drive demand for farmed fish.
Gender equality and women’s empowerment have been increasingly emphasised in food production systems, including fisheries and aquaculture. Accurate assessment and understanding of the state, progress and changes in women’s empowerment in the sub-sectors is required. We applied the project level Women’s Empowerment in Fisheries and Aquaculture Index (pro-WEFI), which is based on the project-level women’s empowerment in agriculture index (pro-WEAI) to standardize the measurement of women’s agency and empowerment in fisheries and aquaculture. Drawing on a survey conducted in north-western Bangladesh, we examined quantitative pro-WEFI data collected from 217 households engaged in aquaculture. Only 33% of the women and 48% of the men in the sample achieved empowerment in aquaculture, attaining scores of 0.75 and above. The mean disempowerment score (1-3DE) revealed that both women and men failed to achieve adequacy on average in nearly 28% of the indicators. Nearly 40% of the dual adult households did not attain gender parity with women achieving lower adequacy scores than men from the same household. Women’s disempowerment was primarily driven by lack of autonomy in their use of income (18.5%), inability to visit important locations (17.4%), and inadequate access to and decision making on financial services (13.4%). Our findings emphasize the significance of conducting comprehensive assessments of women’s empowerment in aquaculture initiatives and its various domains and indicators inform the development of targeted and effective interventions. By identifying domains where gender inequality is most pronounced, projects can better design interventions to create targeted impacts in critical areas.
The flood pulse is a hydrological concept of the river-lake-floodplain system, demonstrating the varying hydrological regimes between wet and dry seasons, which drive productivity and interaction of living and non-living organisms in river-lake-floodplain systems (RLFS). This paper posits that the flood pulse is a ‘social,’ physical, and hydrological driver of change in the Mekong Basin, particularly for the ‘pulsing heart’ of Tonle Sap Lake (TSL). Although the flood pulse provides a comprehensive knowledge of RLFS, there has been less attention on how the flood pulse contributes to the development of river-lake society. This paper examines the social aspects of the flood pulse in RLFS and explores how communities adapt to changing hydrological regimes between the wet and dry seasons. It is argued that the physical and social dimensions of the flood pulse should be essential considerations in water governance, environmental and social policy arenas. It concludes that the flood pulse shapes human settlements in TSL into water-based, water-land-based, and land-based communities, induces vertical and horizontal mobilities of communities between the wet and dry seasons, and influences the organization of productive spaces and non-spatial activities to sustain livelihoods. Developments such as hydropower are causing ecological and social transformations in TSL.
This study focuses on the adoption of Improved Aquaculture Management Practices (IAMP) to boost farm productivity and income, examining factors influencing adoption among small-scale aquaculture fish farming households. The research involved 1178 fish farmers practicing three (small-scale commercial aquaculture, Gher based farming and homestead aquaculture) different aquaculture production systems in Bangladesh. Among them, 715 received training on IAMP and support (fingerlings, feed etc.) from WorldFish, while 463 served as control farmers. Adoption levels were measured using the adoption quotient index, and the impact on productivity and income was estimated using propensity score matching (PSM). Results indicated that approximately 65% of project farmers fully adopted IAMP, with around 28% adopting it partially. The adoption quotient of project farmers exceeded that of control farmers. Fish productivity and income were significantly higher for project farmers in all three technologies, and as the level of adoption increased, their productivity significantly surpassed that of control farmers. The findings show that farmers training, participatory trials, guidebooks, and farmers' field days have significant impact on IAMP adoption levels. Thus, in order to ensure sustainable aquaculture production and income for Bangladesh's small-scale farmers, it is recommended that improved aquaculture management practices be prioritized in an attempt to mitigate the challenges caused by environmental and economic factors in the aquaculture sector.
Incorporating indigenous small fish into local diets can deliver health benefits to communities facing malnutrition.
Basurto, X.; Gutierrez, N.; Franz, N.; del Mar Mancha-Cisneros, M.; Gorelli, G.; Aguion, A.; Smith, S.F.; Harper, S.; Mills, D.J.; Nico, G.; Tilley, A.; Vannuccini, S.; Virdin, J.; Westlund, L.; Allison, E.; Anderson, C.M.; Baio, A.; Cinner, J.; Fabinyi, M.; Hicks, C.; Kolding, J.; Melnychuk, M.C.; Ovando, D.; Robinson, J.; Thilsted, S.H.
Sustainable development aspires to “leave no one behind”1. Even so, limited attention has been paid to small-scale fisheries (SSF) and their importance in eradicating poverty, hunger and malnutrition. Through a collaborative and multidimensional data-driven approach, we have estimated that SSF provide at least 40% (37.3 million tonnes) of global fisheries catches and 2.3 billion people with, on average, 20% of their dietary intake across six key micronutrients essential for human health. Globally, the livelihood of 1 in every 12 people, nearly half of them women, depends at least partly on small-scale fishing, in total generating 44% (US$77.2 billion) of the economic value of all fisheries landed. Regionally, Asian SSF provide fish, support livelihoods and
supply nutrition to the largest number of people. Relative to the total capture of the fisheries sector (comprising large-scale and small-scale fisheries), across all regions, African SSF supply the most catch and nutrition, and SSF in Oceania improve the most livelihoods. Maintaining and increasing these multidimensional SSF contributions to sustainable development requires targeted and effective actions, especially increasing the engagement of fisherfolk in shared management and governance. Without management and governance focused on the multidimensional contributions of SSF,
the marginalization of millions of fishers and fishworkers will worsen.
There is an increasing role of marine protected areas (MPAs) to be the dominant form of marine resource management to protect biodiversity, promote livelihoods, and build food security as part of the sustainable development agenda. However, the effective and equitable achievement of these goals requires understanding women's use, access to, and dependence on marine resources and integrating their knowledge and experiences. Currently, there is inherent gender blindness in the establishment and management of MPAs, which is likely to be confounded as existing MPAs are expanded and new areas are designated. Here we present a self-assessment tool for gender sensitivity within MPA management interventions. The tool is centered on the Feminist Political Ecology approach, which central argument is that different genders experience the environment differently due to their divergent social and cultural roles. The tool evaluates gender sensitivity of management interventions using a total of 15 questions evenly distributed between five themes: Gender power roles; Gendered uses and values; Gendered knowledge, interests, and priorities; Gender-responsiveness management design; and Gender-inclusiveness management design. Responses to all questions are evaluated on a gender awareness scale; 1 = incipient gender awareness; 2 = becoming gender aware; 3 = gender aware; and 4 = gender transformative. The scores for each theme and across the entire assessment are averaged to identify where actions need to be focused. Understanding the power dynamics associated with the access to and control of marine resources will facilitate greater inclusion of women in marine resource management and contribute to the sustainable development agenda.
Key messages:
Forests and fisheries are interconnected, and both are impacted by changes in land use within watersheds.
Watershed functions are affected by climate, land-use change, overfishing, deforestation and forest degradation.
Riparian communities value watersheds but lack political structures for effective integrated management.
Community-based governance of natural resources within watersheds can protect ecosystem services and support livelihoods of riparian communities.
Even where there is little data now, actions can be taken to enhance monitoring and management of watersheds.
Wholesalers in food value chains in developing countries are often criticized as exploitative, offering high output-tied credit to farmers and insufficient with high loss and waste. Recent research highlights their importance as the "hidden middle", often overlooked in policy debates due to insufficient survey research (Reardon 2015). Aquaculture has rapidly expanded in Bangladesh in four decades, attributed to aquatic food traders and off-farm businesses. However, little is known about wholesalers’ behavior and organization within the 'hidden middle' of aquatic food value chains, impeding result generalization due to inadequate sampling techniques in previous research. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate structure, technological changes, and wholesalers’ performance, informing policy debates on aquatic food value chains in Bangladesh.
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