Managing excess capacity in small-scale fisheries: Perspectives from stakeholders in three Southeast Asian countries

The management of fishing capacity—in both inland and marine fisheries—is a major policy concern in most countries in Southeast Asia. Excess capacity leads to a number of negative impacts, such as resource use conflicts, overfishing, environmental degradation, economic wastage, and security threats. This paper presents the results of a regional study that examined various approaches to managing excess fishing capacity in small-scale fisheries in Southeast Asia. More specifically, the paper presents an analysis of perceptions of stakeholders in Cambodia, Philippines and Thailand regarding preferred solutions to addressing excess capacity. The paper concludes with a discussion of policy guidance for addressing excess fishing capacity based on the stakeholder-preferred solutions.     

Systems engineering principles in fisheries management

Fisheries management receives valuable, but often fragmented information from academic disciplines such as biology, economics, and social sciences. A multi-disciplinary perspective seems to be necessary if the fisheries are to become sustainable. Globally, overcapacity is considered as the most serious threat to sustainable fisheries, which indicates the need for a stronger integration of technological aspects into fisheries management. This paper discusses application of systems engineering principles and integration of technology into fisheries management. The systems engineering process facilitates implementation of multi-disciplinary information from researchers to fisheries managers in the decision-making towards sustainable fisheries, but may also be used to overcome multi-disciplinary obstacles among scientists. The article concludes that use of systems engineering principles may become a valuable contribution to fisheries management because of increased transparency and reduced risk associated with the decision-making process.     

Nuts and bolts in fisheries management—a technological approach to sustainable fisheries?

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, overcapacity in the fishing fleet poses a fundamental challenge in fisheries. Overcapacity leads to an increased pressure on fish stocks and a decrease in economic profit. The fishing fleet is marginalised economically, and overcapacity creates allocation conflicts between different gear and vessel groups. In addition, the expenses to control and management increase. Although Norwegian authorities have introduced several restrictions, for example total allowable catch, licenses, vessel quotas, and other regulatory measures, this article shows that the problems connected to overcapacity persist. Analyses of the technical capacity development show that there is an overall capacity expansion although the number of vessels is reduced. This development is an indicator of the dynamics of technological development over time, and the article discusses whether the concept of technology is sufficiently integrated into fisheries management. The important question now is whether analyses of the technical capacity development can serve as a positive supplement to the traditional fisheries management, which largely is based on input from the scientific disciplines biology and economics.     

The Common Fisheries Policy of the European Union and fisheries economics

The revision of the Common Fisheries Policy of the European Union in 2003 was communicated in a ‘Roadmap’, including the opinion of the EU Commission on how to reform the fisheries policy. This paper reviews the Roadmap and confronts the opinion and initiatives proposed by the Commission with the ‘conventional’ bioeconomic theory. The purpose is to assess to what extent the lessons of the theory could be found in the Roadmap. Having in mind the complexity of the EU fisheries, the Roadmap, in particular, focuses on fleet management policy with the aim of reducing overcapacity on a community level. This applies as a supplementary means to the conventional fish stock conservation measures. In conclusion, the EU Commission is aware of the lessons learned from the bioeconomic theory.     

Capacity and economic efficiency in small-scale fisheries: Evidence from the Mediterranean Sea

To design an effective capacity management plan for small-scale fisheries one must understand what one is measuring and define its capacity. As recognized by some authors, overcapacity is a problem that generally affects small-scale fisheries just as much as it does other types of fishing. This study aims to estimate fishing capacity, technical efficiency, scale efficiency and capacity utilization in a particular small-scale fishery in the Mediterranean, i.e., the Northwest Sardinian fleet in Italy. A non-parametric approach using a data envelopment analysis (DEA) model was applied to a sample of trawls in order to estimate their economic capacity, and related measurements were taken. The capacity and efficiency with reference to two different alternative scenarios were also calculated.     

Subsidies to tuna fisheries in the Western Central Pacific Ocean

Tuna fisheries in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean are among the most valuable resources in the region. These fisheries, worth an estimated $4.1 billion each year, play a pivotal role in supporting incomes and development goals in the region. However, due to the twin, and potentially inter-related effects of harmful fishing practices such as the use of fish aggregating devices, overcapacity, and fisheries subsidies, many of these tuna fisheries are currently at risk of over-exploitation—putting the livelihoods of countless local fishers at risk. This study finds that government fisheries subsidies in the region represent 37% of the ex-vessel value of tuna fisheries in the region. Fuel subsidies are estimated at US$ 335 million and non-fuel subsidies are estimated at US$ 1.2 billion for the year 2009. Developed countries are responsible for more than half of the subsidies spent in the predominantly developing region, underlying the fact that the majority of tuna value extracted from the national waters of developing countries in the region benefit larger, developed countries. The total resource rent, or return to society, from tuna fisheries, once adjusted for subsidies is a net negative US$750 million in 2009. Fisheries subsidies are enabling foreign fleets to operate at sub-market rates, putting local fleets out of competition for their own fishery resources.     

Management responses to the problem of incidental catch in fishing: A comparative analysis of the EU,Norway, and the Faeroe Islands

The article addresses incidental catch as a two-level management problem for systems that regulate fish catches. The first level is legal and concerns the problem of establishing clear and legitimate criteria for criminal liability. The second level is environmental and concerns the efficacy of chosen liability criteria in resource conservation. The article compares and explains the solutions chosen by Norway, the Faeroe Islands, and the EU. Each solution constitutes a distinct form of fisheries management. It is argued that national choices are determined by administrative capacity for implementation and political autonomy in the distribution of fishing rights.     

Responses of the fishing sector to transitional constraints: From reactive to proactive change,Yucatan fisheries in Mexico

Most fisheries management studies have concentrated on understanding resource dynamics and have paid less attention to understanding the dynamics of those who use the resources. This situation limits the knowledge about the fisheries system as a whole and specifically about the viability of management schemes. It is vital to understand how the actors within the fishing sector (fishing firm owners/managers, fishers, fisheries managers, and traders) may respond to changes in fishing resources trends, market dynamics, and fisheries policies before they are implemented. These issues are explored in this paper by applying a longitudinal analysis of the Yucatan Mexico's fishing industry. The analysis is presented within the framework of the theory of change and coping strategies. The study primarily involved interviews during 2008 with the main owners of companies in the fishing industry and with fisheries managers and other stakeholders. Time-series catch data on the main fishing resources are also reviewed to evaluate changes across three historical periods and describe how the actors have perceived and responded to those changes. Given conditions of uncertainty in resource availability, changes in market demand and changes in institutional arrangements, the viability of traditional business and resource management practices are discussed. The analysis presents different kind of triggers that have modified the conditions of the fishing sector and had had impacts on the socio-economic–ecological system in which fisheries are embedded. The need for adaptive strategies in the whole chain of the fisheries business and resource management is stressed, given the current changes and conditions of fisheries. The discussion states a series of actions that could improve the relationships between business practices and fisheries management.     

The 1995 FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries: Adopting,implementing or scoring results?

The paper presents the results of a major assessment of Code adoption and implementation in nine fishing countries in Asia (China, Thailand, Vietnam), Africa (Senegal, Guinea Bissau and Guinea) and in the Caribbean (Jamaica, Dominican Republic and Trinidad & Tobago), which are part of the international research project ECOST. The main findings are that the Code as an international policy instrument remains relevant and adaptable to the current international fisheries context, and that its guiding principles and provisions have been endorsed and adopted in almost unanimous fashion by the countries covered, and integrated into fisheries policy letters and legal frameworks. However, results also suggest that tackling the truly difficult issues in fisheries, such as combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing or adjusting fishing overcapacity has been a lot less successful. The design and implementation of necessary measures often remains very weak in domains with important economic and political dimensions. The causes for this are attributed to a mix of administrative inertia, lack of political will and stamina, and short-sighted economic considerations.     

Fisheries development in northeastern Asia in conjunction with changes in climate and social systems

The status and prospects of fisheries in northeastern Asia are reviewed in conjunction with climate change and social issues. This region has the biggest yield, consumption, and international trade of fisheries products in the world. Due to increasing industrialization and greenhouse gas emissions, higher rates of warming have occurred. The impacts of climate change on fisheries could be detrimental because the main fishery products are small pelagic fish whose biomass fluctuations are sensitive to climate changes. Improvements in the economies of the nations in this region offset the demand for fish products in human diets, and employment in fisheries. It is recommended that fisheries management plans consider both changes in climate and in social systems. Stocks which migrate between national jurisdictions are in need of particular attention.     

An overview of marine fisheries management in China

China is the world's largest country in terms of fish production, yet its fisheries management is comparatively unknown outside the country. This article gives an overview of the current management system and highlights some of its challenges. In the past 30 years, the Department of Fishery Administration has formulated and organized a series of conservation and management regimes and measures. The most important tools are minimum mesh size regulation and a range of input control measures, including seasonal closures and attempts to control fishing capacity through licensing and limiting total engine power. However, fisheries output is only controlled through a nation-wide total catch limit. Certain progress has been achieved, but there are still problems as the resource situation is poor. While the existing measures could, in principle, improve sustainability, their enforcement is insufficient, and they do not limit fishing effort in a way that would allow recovery.     

Administrative aspects

In an article published in Marine Policy a year ago, (Lynne and Brian Chatterton, ‘How much political compromise can fisheries management stand’, Vol 5, No 1, April 1981), it was argued that management of South Australian coastal fisheries reflected the political ideology of the government in power, rather than the biological and socioeconomic imperatives of the resource. In the first article below, A.M. Olsen, former Director of Fisheries, criticizes the Chattertons' conclusions, maintaining that fisheries should be managed by professionals not politicians and that many of Brian Chatterton's problems during his tenure as Minister of Fisheries were of his own making. In the Chattertons' response, they point out that by allocating management of the resource between various vested interests (including government bureaucracy) a minister is making a political decision. In the third article, R.D. Walkerden, a former Permanent Secretary to Fisheries Ministers in South Australia, offers an administrator's view of the controversy. Detailed and parochial as some of the points at issue appear, the debate provides an illuminating view of some of the ideological and organizational conflicts that can hinder the effective management of a coastal resource.     

The Chattertons reply

In an article published in Marine Policy a year ago, (Lynne and Brian Chatterton, ‘How much political compromise can fisheries management stand’, Vol 5, No 1, April 1981), it was argued that management of South Australian coastal fisheries reflected the political ideology of the government in power, rather than the biological and socioeconomic imperatives of the resource. In the first article below, A.M. Olsen, former Director of Fisheries, criticizes the Chattertons' conclusions, maintaining that fisheries should be managed by professionals not politicians and that many of Brian Chatterton's problems during his tenure as Minister of Fisheries were of his own making. In the Chattertons' response, they point out that by allocating management of the resource between various vested interests (including government bureaucracy) a minister is making a political decision. In the third article, R.D. Walkerden, a former Permanent Secretary to Fisheries Ministers in South Australia, offers an administrator's view of the controversy. Detailed and parochial as some of the points at issue appear, the debate provides an illuminating view of some of the ideological and organizational conflicts that can hinder the effective management of a coastal resource.     

Criticism from former director of fisheries

In an article published in Marine Policy a year ago, (Lynne and Brian Chatterton, ‘How much political compromise can fisheries management stand’, Vol 5, No 1, April 1981), it was argued that management of South Australian coastal fisheries reflected the political ideology of the government in power, rather than the biological and socioeconomic imperatives of the resource. In the first article below, A.M. Olsen, former Director of Fisheries, criticizes the Chattertons' conclusions, maintaining that fisheries should be managed by professionals not politicians and that many of Brian Chatterton's problems during his tenure as Minister of Fisheries were of his own making. In the Chattertons' response, they point out that by allocating management of the resource between various vested interests (including government bureaucracy) a minister is making a political decision. In the third article, R.D. Walkerden, a former Permanent Secretary to Fisheries Ministers in South Australia, offers an administrator's view of the controversy. Detailed and parochial as some of the points at issue appear, the debate provides an illuminating view of some of the ideological and organizational conflicts that can hinder the effective management of a coastal resource.     

Diversifying fisheries into tourism in Taiwan: Experiences and prospects

Tourism is accepted as natural part of the socioeconomic fabric and is juxtaposed with fisheries in some coastal areas in Taiwan. This is the result of governmental policy on diversifying fisheries into tourism. This paper examines how this policy plays out in the context of a declining offshore fisheries industry and a rising demand for marine leisure opportunities. The paper utilizes documentary analysis and personal interviews with relevant stakeholders. It shows diversifying fisheries into tourism is the right direction for progress on the government agenda. However, conflicts between resource users, lack of community capacity, fisher’s business skills, and human resources in local governments, and low market penetration combined together to militate against the success of the policy. It argues for the need to establish negotiation mechanisms, build community capacity, encourage education and training programs, and introduce new coastal economic activities for future improvement. The paper finally suggests a holistic approach with integrated coastal management practices for the fisheries diversification development.     

Small-scale marine fisheries policy in Vietnam

Vietnam's marine fisheries are considered to be small scale and are concentrated in coastal near-shore waters. This has resulted in heavy pressure on near-shore fisheries resources. Near-shore fisheries are considered by fishers and the government to be over-exploited, causing hardship for many coastal communities. This paper reviews and analyzes changes in policy towards small-scale fisheries in Vietnam over the last two decades. The primary issues facing the small-scale fisheries in Vietnam are to restructure the near-shore fisheries and to address over-capacity. Recommended actions include improved fisheries statistics, resources for provincial fisheries staff, and a coordinated and integrated approach involving a mixed strategy of resource management; resource restoration; economic and community development; and new governance arrangements.     

Governing fisheries as complex adaptive systems

Fisheries are complex human-in-nature systems. The conventional approach to fisheries systems has been to treat them as predictable and controllable. As complex systems they are neither of the two and have to be approached differently. Complex systems often exhibit the capacity to self-organize or adapt, even without outside influence. If this is true of fisheries, it should lead to a radically different approach to management of fisheries systems that places much emphasis on enabling self-organization, learning and adaptation. Conceptual and practical frameworks for enabling activities are needed.     

A brief catalogue of failures: Framing evaluation and learning in fisheries resource management

We propose a framework for enabling a systematic evaluation of a fisheries resource management system, which we define as a feed-back mechanism coupled to a fishery. The resource management system includes four basic functions: diagnostics, intervention, goal setting, and decision making. This model allows for the development of an evaluation framework for fisheries resource management by facilitating a typology of failures. We suggest that the potential for systemic and interdisciplinary learning will be significantly enhanced through the process of developing such a framework.     

System evaluation of sustainability in the Norwegian cod-fisheries

Overcapacity in the fishing fleets is considered as the most serious threat to sustainable fisheries. More effective fishing vessels and catching gear contribute to increased catch capacity. Increased catch capacity causes environmental problems such as overexploitation and calls for larger quotas. The problem of overcapacity indicates the need for a stronger integration of technological aspects into fisheries management. This article assesses the differences in sustainability between the Norwegian ocean and coastal fishing fleets in the cod fisheries, by using systems engineering methods. Attributes of sustainability in the Norwegian cod fishing fleets are investigated, as well as acceptance criteria and performance indicators. The results show that there are huge differences in the performance between the vessel groups, and that the results of an evaluation of sustainability in the fishing fleets are dependent on which attributes are explored. Thus, the discussion may contribute to a better decision basis and improved sustainability in fisheries management.     

New Zealand seafood firm competitiveness in export markets: The role of the quota management system and aquaculture legislation

New Zealand's quota management system (QMS) was implemented in 1986 to address problems caused by a regulated open entry management system in place for the previous two decades. Excess capacity in the inshore fisheries caused several stocks to become depleted and conflicts to intensify between fishing sectors. The allocation of individual transferable quota (ITQ) was viewed as the best way to improve efficiency within the over-capitalised inshore fisheries and provide incentives for developing the deepwater fisheries. The expected benefits of the QMS fit with the political climate at that time, as the government was using market forces to address the deteriorating economy. This article outlines the results of a research project that involved four medium to large-sized, highly vertically integrated New Zealand seafood firms. The purpose of the project was to identify these firms’ sources of competitiveness in export markets and the process the firms used to develop sources of competitiveness, while adapting to rapid and radical changes to the political and business environment and transformation of the fisheries management system. The project's results show that the basis to seafood firm competitiveness is the security of supply to the fisheries resource provided by the QMS and aquaculture legislation. The project also outlines the role that government policies have in sustaining firm- and industry-level competitiveness. This article contributes to the broader discussion on the application of ITQ and other types of long-term access rights to the management of fisheries and does not express the views of the Ministry of Fisheries.