Value chain analysis of a women‐dominated wild‐caught mud crab fishery

Mangubhai, S; Fox, M; Nand, Y; Mason, N

Value chain analysis of a women‐dominated wild‐caught mud crab fishery

Mangubhai, S Fox, M Nand, Y Mason, N

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Publisher:: Wiley
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Fish and Fisheries

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Mangubhai, S
dc.contributor.author	Fox, M
dc.contributor.author	Nand, Y
dc.contributor.author	Mason, N
dc.date.accessioned	2024-06-12T22:36:53Z
dc.date.available	2024-06-12T22:36:53Z
dc.identifier.citation	Fish and Fisheries
dc.identifier.issn	1467-2960
dc.identifier.issn	1467-2979
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/179501
dc.description.abstract	<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>A value chain analysis (VCA) is a cost‐effective tool to guide targeted value chain development interventions to address social wellbeing and environmental performance. Examining value chains through a gender lens can help design and implement interventions that enhance opportunities for women in the fisheries and address gender inequalities in the sector. We conducted a VCA in 2015 of the wild‐caught mud crab (<jats:italic>Scylla serrata</jats:italic>) fishery in Bua Province, Fiji. We found five main players involved in the selling of mud crabs – fishers, traders, retail shops, restaurants and exporters. The value chain was dominated by Indigenous (iTaukei) women fishers (88.1% of fishers) and characterised by low technological input, targeted largely for domestic markets or consumption, and with limited value‐adding activities. Although most women harvested mud crabs on a part‐time basis, it was an important source of income for most with 30% relying on it as their main livelihood. Despite being a lucrative commodity, there are several bottlenecks in the fishery – the relative informality of relationships amongst players in the value chain, the independent livelihood‐driven harvest behaviours of fishers, and opportunistic sale of products. As a result, the fishery did not meet the demands of the domestic market. Our study concluded the gendered‐skewness in the fishery increases the vulnerability of the chain to declines in economic productivity because of its reliance on irregular suppliers, and gender‐based constraints. However, the low frequency and intensity of harvesting and use of low technological harvesting methods meant the fishery was not over‐exploited and likely sustainable.</jats:p>
dc.language	en
dc.publisher	Wiley
dc.relation.ispartof	Fish and Fisheries
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1111/faf.12838
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	0602 Ecology, 0704 Fisheries Sciences
dc.subject.classification	Fisheries
dc.subject.classification	3005 Fisheries sciences
dc.subject.classification	3103 Ecology
dc.subject.classification	4104 Environmental management
dc.title	Value chain analysis of a women‐dominated wild‐caught mud crab fishery
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.for	0602 Ecology
utslib.for	0704 Fisheries Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences/School of International Studies
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2024-06-12T22:36:49Z
pubs.publication-status	Published online

Abstract:

AbstractA value chain analysis (VCA) is a cost‐effective tool to guide targeted value chain development interventions to address social wellbeing and environmental performance. Examining value chains through a gender lens can help design and implement interventions that enhance opportunities for women in the fisheries and address gender inequalities in the sector. We conducted a VCA in 2015 of the wild‐caught mud crab (Scylla serrata) fishery in Bua Province, Fiji. We found five main players involved in the selling of mud crabs – fishers, traders, retail shops, restaurants and exporters. The value chain was dominated by Indigenous (iTaukei) women fishers (88.1% of fishers) and characterised by low technological input, targeted largely for domestic markets or consumption, and with limited value‐adding activities. Although most women harvested mud crabs on a part‐time basis, it was an important source of income for most with 30% relying on it as their main livelihood. Despite being a lucrative commodity, there are several bottlenecks in the fishery – the relative informality of relationships amongst players in the value chain, the independent livelihood‐driven harvest behaviours of fishers, and opportunistic sale of products. As a result, the fishery did not meet the demands of the domestic market. Our study concluded the gendered‐skewness in the fishery increases the vulnerability of the chain to declines in economic productivity because of its reliance on irregular suppliers, and gender‐based constraints. However, the low frequency and intensity of harvesting and use of low technological harvesting methods meant the fishery was not over‐exploited and likely sustainable.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/179501