RICH FISHERIES - POOR FISHERFOLK Socio-Economics of the Nile Perch Fishery on Lake Victoria

7/28/2019 RICH FISHERIES - POOR FISHERFOLK Socio-Economics of the Nile Perch Fishery on Lake Victoria

1/17

Socio-economics of the Nile Perch Fishery on Lake Victoria

RICH FISHERIES - POOR FISHERFOLK

Some Preliminary Observations About the Effects of Tradeand Aid in the Lake Victoria Fisheries

Eirik G. Jansen1

Lake Victoria is the second biggest lake in the world. With its 69,000 km 2, the lake has the same size asIreland. The lake is shared between three countries; Tanzania (which possesses 49%, Uganda (45%) and

Kenya (6%) of the lake.

The findings, interpretations and conclusions in this publication are those of the authors and do not

necessarily reflect those of IUCN or the partner organisations in this project.

1Technical AdvisorIUCN-The World Conservation Union

Socio-economics of the Nile Perch Fishery on Lake VictoriaP.O. Box 68200

NAIROBI, Kenya


2/17

Table of Contents

SUMMARY............................................................................................................................................ 3

INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................................. 4

DEVELOPMENT OF THE LAKE VICTORIA FISHERIES ............ ............. ............. ............. ........... 5

EFFECTS OF THE EXPORT-ORIENTED TRADE IN THE LAKE VICTORIA FISHERIES ........ 8

ACTORS AT A NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL LEVEL............... .............. ............. ............. 12

TRADE, ENVIRONMENT AND AID................................................................................................. 16

REFERENCES..................................................................................................................................... 17


3/17

SUMMARY

This paper discusses the effects of trade and export of fish from Lake Victoria to industrialized countries.on the basis of preliminary findings from short visits to a number of fishing communities in the Kenyanand Ugandan parts of Lake Victoria in 1995 and 1996, the effects of the trade for the fishermen, fish

processors, fishmongers and consumers are indicated and briefly discussed. The recent development ofthe Lake Victoria fisheries has taken place in a context where national and international institutions haveplayed a major role. The paper focuses on four sets of "actors" which in their own ways, and incombination, have to a large extent influenced, and will continue to influence, the development of thefisheries. These institutions/actors are the governments of the three East African countries, the fishprocessing export factories located at the shorelines of Lake Victoria, the international market for fish

and the multilateral and bilateral aid organizations.

The empirical material of the Lake Victoria fisheries is discussed in the broader context of tradeliberalization which has become increasingly central to the economic policy of the developing countries.

The paper briefly refers to the efforts which are being made by international institutions like OECD andthe World Trade organization to develop rules and guidelines for promotion of "green" trade. The paperargues that unless considerations of social equity and fairness are linked to the promotion of "green"trade, even some types of trade which are environmentally benign, may have detrimental developmenteffects for large population groups.


4/17

INTRODUCTIONTrade liberalization has become increasinglycentral to economic policy in developingcountries. The liberalization of trade ispromoted by a number of internationalinstitutions. The World Bank and the IMF's

insistence on structural adjustment programmesare closely tied to free trade, and the expansionof commerce through the deregulation ofmarkets is at the core of the mission of thenewly established World Trade Organisation.With the fall of communism and the system ofcentrally state planning, the doctrine of freetrade is enjoying widespread acclaim all aroundthe world.

With the increased awareness about the

importance of the environment and sustainabledevelopment, trade has become linked toenvironmental issues. The UNCED processcontributed much to create a stronger focus onthe relationship between trade and theenvironment. Agenda 21, one of the centraldocuments of UNCED, states that trade policiesand environmental policies should be mutuallysupportive. Agenda 21 outlines a number ofproposals on how environmental concerns andtrade could be better integrated. The World

Trade Organisation and OECD are presentlydeveloping rules and guidelines for how "greentrade" can be promoted. These efforts includeimprovement of the product and process

standards of export goods from the south,development of eco-labelling schemes and rulesfor packaging and recycling. Transfer ofenvironmentally friendly technologies andprovision of information about northernenvironmental standards are central measures inthis regard.

OECD/DAC has for several years been

concerned with the new role aid organisationscan play in reconciling the interests betweentrade and the environment and how aid agenciescan contribute to promote "green" trade. Manyareas have been identified for support on how

the natural resources from the south can beexploited and processed in a sustainable mannerwhile at the same time meet the quality andenvironmental demands of the north.

On the basis of an empirical example, this paper

will discuss the relationship between trade,environment and development co-operationbetween north and south. The example is fromthe fisheries sector. Trade in fish between south

and north is becoming increasingly important asthe fish catches in the north are declining, whilethere at the same time is an unquestionabledemand and sufficient purchase capacity for fishin the north.

The "case study" presented deals with thefisheries of Lake Victoria in East Africa.During the last 10-15 years a substantial export-oriented trade has developed on the basis of thefisheries resource of Lake Victoria.Development aid organisations and theinternational development banks have played animportant role in stimulating this development.

The information presented in this paper on the

effects of trade and aid in Lake Victoria, isbased on preliminary findings from short visitsto a number of fishing communities in the

Kenya and Uganda parts of Lake Victoria.Interviews have also been conducted withrepresentatives linked to the export-orientedindustry and government officials in Kenya andUganda. The investigations are still in theirinitial stage and more information will becollected and analysed during the next couple ofyears. We consider, however, that sufficientinformation and evidence are available topresent some findings which are relevant for thegeneral issues about trade, environment and aidwe want to address in this paper. We believethat the very general conclusions we draw about

these issues will still be valid when moreinformation has been collected.

The paper is outlined as follows: The next

section deals with the development of the LakeVictoria fisheries. The subsequent section spellsout some of the effects of the present utilisationof the fisheries resources in Lake Victoria forthe different actors who have been, and are,dependent on fisheries. Then follows a sectionwhich discusses some of the main institutionswhich have contributed to the development ofexport-oriented fishing industry. Finally somecomments are made concerning the role ofdevelopment aid agencies in promoting "greentrade". It is suggested that unless considerationsof social equity and fairness are linked to thepromotion of more environmentally green trade,even some types of trade which areenvironmentally benign, may have detrimentaldevelopment effects for large populationgroups.


5/17

Development of the Lake Victoria fisheries

In order to understand the effects of trade andaid in the Lake Victoria fisheries, it is necessaryto have some knowledge about how thetraditional fisheries of Lake Victoria was

organized and the factors which led to theexport-oriented fishing industry.

Lake Victoria is the second biggest lake in theworld. With its 69,000 km, the lake has thesame size as Ireland. The lake is sharedbetween three countries Tanzania (whichpossesses 49% of the area of the lake, Uganda(45%) and Kenya (6%). During the late 1950'sand early 1960's Nile perch (Lates niloticus)was introduced in the Ugandan and Kenyanparts of Lake Victoria. Until 1979 the perchconstituted only an insignificant part of the totalcatch. It is the rapid growth of the Nile perchduring the last 15 years which has transformedthe fisheries of Lake Victoria. In order tounderstand the recent developments of the LakeVictoria fisheries, it is therefore useful todistinguish between the "old" pre-Nile perchfisheries regime which lasted up to 1979 and the'hew" fisheries regime which developed duringthe 1980's (Greboval, 1989).

The pre-Ni le perch fi sheries regime

The total catch from Lake Victoria during the

1960's and 1970's was quite stable; about100,000 tons of fish was caught annually. Untilthe mid 1970's the fisheries of Lake Victoriawas exploited solely by small scale fishermen.During the early 1970's it was estimated thatsome 50,000 fishermen operated from some12,000 fishing vessels (Butcher and Colaris,1973). The fishermen had a varying degree ofinvolvement in the fisheries; some fished onlyon a part-time or seasonal basis while otherswere full-time fishermen. Some 80% of thefishermen derived their primary income fromfishing. Most of the fishermen were engaged in

complementary agricultural activities. Thetendency during the 1960's and 1970's was,however, that due to increased scarcity of landand lack of employment opportunities, a largernumber of the men left the originallysubsistence/part-time mode of exploitation andbecame full-time fishermen.

In the pre-Nile perch regime there were clearbarriers to investment in the amount ofequipment in the production sector. Very fewowners of canoes possessed more than one

canoe or owned more gill-nets than they wereable to control themselves. The ownershippattern was thus very decentralized and theincome from the lake was distributed fairlyevenly among the fishermen (Jansen 1973 and1977). There was very little investment intechnological improvements. The canoes weresailed and manually operated in the same wayas they had been for decades. Althoughoutboard engines had been available for the last30 years, only a few per cent of the canoeswere fitted with them. Almost all the canoesfitted with outboard engines were used fortransport purposes only.

In the pre-Nile perch regime also the processingand trading sector of the traditional fisherieswas almost totally dominated by small operatorsbeing based in the local communities around thelake. The great majority of the people involvedboth in processing and trading were womenliving in the local communities close to the lake.

The part of the fish which was not sold freshwas processed (smoked, sun-dried) on the beachand carried to local markets inland by thousands

of women. Most of the animal protein which thelocal population ate came from fish from thelake. There were few wholesalers in the fishtrade, and the traders never acquired controlover the fishermen as they have managed to doin so many other traditional fisheries throughthe establishment of credit relationships. Mostfishermen sold their fish to a limited number offishmongers with whom they developed longstanding relationships.

In the pre-Nile perch regime, the fisheries to alarge extent existed independent of outside

interference. Except for a small trawler-fish-meal complex set up in the mid 1970s there waslittle penetration of capital from outside. Alsothe three governments' interventions werelimited. The fisheries departments of the threeriparian states collected statistics on the catchand adopted different types of regulations inorder to control the fishing effort. The


6/17

governments had, however, very limitedpossibilities to enforce these regulations.

Although there in principle has been an openaccess to fish in the lake, the local fishingcommunities around the lake have all through

this century developed rules which regulate thefisheries (Ogutu, 1992 and 1994). These rulesstipulate who may fish, in what season, in whatarea, what types of fishing gear which areacceptable and what type/size of fish which canbe caught. Institutions have been developed inthe local communities to enforce theseregulations. The rules and nature of"enforcement institutions" vary from one areato another and they have also changed overtime. In some places these rules are detailed,explicitly expressed and well-known in thecommunity. In other areas the rules may be

more vague, cover less issues related to thefishing effort and may not be generallyrecognized in the community. This system oflocal management has been threatened with theintroduction of commercial fishing. Theoperators of the trawlers fishing in the lake havelittle knowledge of these rules, or feel free todisregard them.

Characteristics of Nile perch regime -1980-

1995

The rapid proliferation of Nile perch started inthe Kenyan part of the lake about 15-20 years

after the fish was introduced in the lake. In1978 1,000 tons of Nile perch were caught, in1981 23,000 tons and in 1985 the productionhad increased to 50,000 tons. An even fasterincrease took place in Uganda and Tanzania. Inboth these countries less than 1,000 tons of Nileperch were landed in 1981. In 1986 41,000 tonsof Nile perch was caught in Uganda and124,000 tons in the same year in Tanzania. In1989 the total production of Nile perch in thethree countries was 325,000 tons (Greboval,1992).

The total catch of fish increased from about100,000 tons in 1979 to about 500,000 tons in1989. Since 1989 the annual production hasremained at a level four to five times higherthan what was achieved during the late 1960'sand 1970's. During the last 6-7 years theproduction of fish from Lake Victoria hasrepresented about 25% of the annual total catchfrom Africa's inland fisheries (FAO, 1995).

Along with the rapid increase in the catch forNile perch, the composition of the fish biomassin the lake changed dramatically. Nile perch,being a predator, feed on most of the species offish in the lake. From being a multi-speciesfisheries, the fisheries of Lake Victoria is to-day

basically a "three species fisheries". Nile perchis the dominant species, but about a third of thelake's catch consists of a small sardine-like fish(R. Argentea), and various species of Tilapiaconstitute about 10% of the total catch of thelake.

These three species alone have during the lastyears made up about 98% of the total catch inthe lake.

What is amazing with this rapid increase ofproduction was how quickly all parts of the

fisheries system adapted to this situation.Although there are few statistics to support thistrend, it is clear that many more fishermen wererecruited to work in the lake and that manyseasonal and part-time fishermen became full-time fishermen. More canoes were built; thenumber increased from 11,000 in the late1970's to 19,000 canoes in 1987. The fishermenpurchased gill-nets with large mesh size inorder to catch the Nile perch which oftenweighed between 20-50 kilos. (In Kenya thelargest Nile perch caught weighed 179 kilos).Also the number of women engaged in the

processing and marketing of fish increased(Abila, 1994 and 1995). Again, part-timeprocessors and fishmongers became full-time inaddition to new women recruited to the trade(Yongo, 1993 and 1994).

Initially the local market could not absorb theincrease of Nile perch. Particularly in Kenya inthe early 1980's it was difficult to sell the perchon the local markets. Many of the consumersliving in the fishing communities near the lakeresented the "oily" and fat fish. However, it

only took a few years before the perch becamea popular table fish also in Kenya as new formsof fish processing developed. In Uganda and

Tanzania the perch was better known than inKenya, as Lake Kyoga and Lake Albert inUganda and Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania hadsupported flourishing perch fisheries in the past.During the mid-1980's, in a period of only 3 to4 years, the market was able to absorb a supply


7/17

of 2 to 3 times higher than any time previouslywithout much effect on prices (Greboval, 1992).

This shows the popularity of the Nile perch andthe existence of a huge demand for a mediumpriced table fish in the three countries. There isno doubt that many new fish consumers gained

tremendously from the changes having affectedthe rich Lake Victoria fisheries during the1980's, with huge amounts of fish having beenmade available at more affordable pricesthroughout a large portion of the threecountries.

People in the harvesting, processing anddistribution sub-sectors of the fisheries alsobenefited greatly from the new fisheries regime.It has been estimated that during the 1980's anadditional 180,000 jobs were created in theprimary and secondary fields of the fisheries

(Greboval, 1992). Many people who had beenunemployed or underemployed were able toobtain incomes at levels they had neverexperienced before. No wonder that manyfisher-folk nick-named the Nile perch "thesaviour". In the early and mid-1980's thefisheries continued to be almost exclusivelyoperated by small-scale rural fisher-folk withlittle fundamental change in technologies,techniques and practices compared to the formerfisheries regime.

Linked to the rapid growth of the Nile perch,

another "revolutionary" change took place inthe Lake Victoria fisheries. This change isrelated to the huge demand for the Nile perchwhich soon expanded beyond the three countriessharing the lake. A market for the perchdeveloped quickly in the industrializedcountries. In order to satisfy this marketprocessing factories was established along theshorelines of Lake Victoria. These plantsfilleted the Nile perch and exported the fillets toEurope, Middle East, Japan and USA. In theearly 1980's the first plants were put up in

Kenya. They proved to be so profitable thatmore factories soon were set up in all the threecountries. Today there are about 35 factoriesspread around the lake. Many of the factorieshave been financed by internationaldevelopment banks and received support from

government development aid agencies of theindustrialized countries.

It is the activities of these factories whichduring the last ten years have been dominatingand giving shape to the new fisheries regime of

Lake Victoria (OSIENALA, 1995). From beinga fisheries oriented towards the local andregional markets, the fisheries of Lake Victoriawas thus opened up to the global economy.Because there seems to be an unlimited demandfor the Nile perch abroad, there are dangers ofover-exploitation of the fish. Although there isno available and precise assessment of thedifferent stocks of fish in the lake, there are to-day strong indications that the Nile perch isbeing harvested in a way which is notsustainable in the long run.

In the latter part of the 1980's only a small partof the total catch of Nile perch was exportedabroad. During the last few years severalfactories have been established, each with acapacity to process up to a quarter of the Nileperch landed on the shorelines of Lake Victoria.

The 35 filleting factories around Lake Victoriaare therefore competing hard to be able tosecure sufficient raw material. Many factorieshave already been closed permanently ortemporarily due to lack of Nile perch. Althoughthere is no reliable statistics showing the totalamount exported, an increasingly larger part of

the catch is sent abroad. The only Nile perchavailable in the local markets are the oneswhich are damaged, or too small for the exportmarket.

During the last years the processing factorieshave, due to lack of Nile perch, also started tofillet Tilapia and to market this fish in theindustrialized countries. The owners of thefactories naturally hope that the demand for

Tilapia will take off in the same manner as itdid for Nile perch. Also the small sardine fish,R. Argentea, has been subject to regional andinternational commercialization. Specialfactories have been established to convert thesardine into fish meal for use in the broiler- andanimal fodder industry. Thus all the threeimportant fish species of Lake Victoria, whichtogether make up 98% of the catch, havebecome integrated into the global market.


8/17

Effects of the export-oriented trade in the Lake Victoria fisheries

The export-oriented fishing industry has in aprofound way affected the traditional fisheriesand the different groups of people who dependon it. The effects can be found at different

"levels"; individual and household level,community, national and international level.

The effects are of different "character",economic, political and social. (C. Harris et al.,1995). More research needs to be carried inorder to describe the more detailed impacts. Inthis paper we will only focus on some selectedtypes of effects which are relevant for ourcomments on trade, environment and the role ofdevelopment aid organizations.

Ef fects for the fi shermen

In the pre-Nile perch regime most of the canoeswere owner-operated which means that theowner of the canoe worked in the boat and wasin charge of the fishing operations. The owneralso managed the sale of fish when landing onthe beach. Often the other men who wereworking in the same canoe as the ownerpossessed their own gear. This pattern has beencompletely reversed during the last 10-15 years.Asowa-Okwe reports that among the fishermenin the Ugandan part of Lake Victoria as manyas 83 % of the men (only men) who participatedin the work in canoes were crew only, owning

neither the vessel nor any fishing gear.

The Nile perch fisheries have required strongergill-nets. New synthetic multi-filament largemesh gill nets have been imported from abroad.

These gill-nets are much more expensive thanthe traditional locally manufactured gill-nets.Many of the traditional fishermen cannot affordto buy this type of equipment. Because of thelarger catches of fish, many well-to-do peopleoutside the fishing industry have started toinvest in canoes and modern and expensivegear. The owners of the equipment may live as

far away as Nairobi and Kampala and many willhardly ever visit the fishing beaches. Theseowners employ skilled managers, coming fromthe fishing communities, to organize the fishingoperations for them and to sell the fish when itis being landed. Many times these managerswill not go into the canoe and participate in thefishing operations themselves. They will waitfor "their" canoe(s) on the beach. Many of the

managers will hire experienced operators whohandle and are in charge of the fishingoperations in the lake. Thus, a number of newcategories of fishermen have developed and

become more prevalent during the Nile perchfisheries; absentee owners, managers, operatorsand labourers (crew) (C. Harris et al. 1995).

There exist many variations in how a unit(canoe and gear) is owned and operated. These

different arrangements depend, partly, on thescale and type equipment used in the fishingoperations. It is, however, still possible to comeacross owner-operated canoes in which theowner combines the role of operator in the lakeand manager of the total fishing operations.

A fairly recent trend concerning ownership andmanagement of the fishing operations isconnected to the increased competition amongthe processing factories to secure sufficientsupplies of fish. Presently the purchasing agentsof the factories are said to be "chasing" thefishermen in order to be able to acquire fish.

The agents make all sorts of arrangements withthe fishermen (credit relationships, supply ofgear, purchase of fish in the lake from specialtransport vessels, etc.) in order to obtain regularsupplies from their "own" fishermen. These

efforts have had mixed success. Therefore a fewfactories have during the last years purchased orrented their own vessels, including trawlers,and hired their own crew in order to get enoughfish. In this way the owners of the factories willtry to undermine the fishermen's opportunity toexploit the situation of "the sellers' market". Towhat extent this "vertical integration" will beadopted by the other factories, remains to beseen.

The recent tendency of the processing factoriesto enter into the production chain, contribute to

strengthen the trend of transferring theownership of the canoes and vessels away fromthe fishing communities. This implies that muchof the profit earned in the fishing operationswill not be reinvested in the fishingcommunities. There are indications of strongerconcentration of ownership. Interviews wecarried out in a number of landing beaches inKenya and Uganda in late 1995, clearly-showed


9/17

that there were quite many owners of canoeswhich possessed more than one canoe; in fact, itwas not uncommon that a person living inKisumu or Nairobi could be the owner of 5 to10 canoes.

The crew in the canoes are being paid indifferent ways (in shares, fixed incomes).Harris (1995) reports that strikes among thecrew are not uncommon, a clear indication thatthe people who carry out the work in the lakeare not satisfied with their share of the earnings.

The crew have, however, a strong sanctionagainst being offered too little; they can stealboth gear and fish.

During the last years sale of fish to thepurchasing agents of the processing factoriesinside the lake, and not on the beach, has

become more common. Sometimes crew sellpart of the catch of fish to purchasing agentsthey have no obligations to, and put the moneythey receive in their pockets. Other timesexpensive gill-nets can be stolen, remounted andsold to fishermen going to far away beaches.During the last 10 years a whole new system ofsurveillance has been developed among thefishermen in order to avoid theft. The institutionof elected beach-leaders for each landing beachhas been established mainly in order to preventtheft and to mitigate in conflicts betweenfishermen. Also the fishermen co-operatives

have developed techniques in order to reducetheft of gear and fish.

Although the level of income may be low formany of the labourers, there is no doubt thatmany fishermen, both those working in thecanoes and the managers waiting on the beach,have obtained increased earnings from the richfisheries. A clear evidence of increasedpurchasing power among the men participatingin the various tasks connected with the fisheries,can be witnessed in the dramatic transformation

of the landing sites for fish. In the past thelanding sites were very modest, with open smallhotels serving traditional food to the fishermenafter returning from a hard day's work in thelake. To-day there is a "boom-town"atmosphere on many of the larger beaches withshops, hotels and restaurants catering for theneeds of the fishermen after they return fromthe lake with their catch in the morning hours.

Nowadays many fishermen spend the night inthe lake in order to protect the gill-nets and thecatch from theft. Being tired after a night in thecanoe, many fishermen are lured to the sweetmusic and beer of the restaurants as soon asthey return from the lake. G. Ogutu has

expressed his concern for the deterioratingmoral behaviour which can be observed on thelanding sites (G. Ogutu, 1992). It is quiteobvious that many tired fishermen are temptedto spend a large part of their increased earningsin the new recreational facilities which havedeveloped.

It is thus not only the family members whobenefit from the share of money given to a crewmember after a good night's catch. The aptlyformulated title "Wife, today I only had moneyfor pombe" (pombe=beer, E.G.J), given to an

article dealing with food security and women'sbargaining power in the agricultural householdsof Tanzania (Holmboe-Ottesen and Wandel,1992), also seems to characterize very well asituation which the wives of many fishermenaround Lake Victoria face.

Ef fects for the fi sh-processors

In the past, thousands of women were engagedin fish processing. The fish which was not soldfresh, was smoked or sun-dried. Most of theprocessing was carried out on the landing sitesor in appropriate places close to it. It was

usually poor women who alone, or in smallgroups, processed the fish. Many of the fishprocessors were the wives of fishermen andmany of them were also traders, selling the fishthey had processed in the local markets. To-daymost of the Nile perch is being transporteddirectly to the factories where it is being filletedand frozen. The fish processors only process the

juvenile Nile perch which is being caught andthe damaged Nile perch which the purchasingagents of the factories reject.

The small sardine like fish (R. Argentea) isused for both human consumption and for fishmeal produced for the animal fodder industry.In both cases the fish is being sun-dried by thetraditional fish processors before it is beingsold. Tilapia is mainly sold fresh and only beingprocessed when it is not possible to sell it in afresh state.


10/17

There is no doubt that thousands of traditional,small-scale fishmongers have lost their jobs asthe processing factories have expanded theiroperations. However, the processing factorieshave created two new niches for employmentfor fish processors. Inside the factories both

men and women are being employed in thefilleting of fish. The number of peopleemployed in the factories is very smallcompared to the number who lost their jobs inthe traditional processing industry.

The second "niche" for employment created bythe processing factories is related to the wasteproducts of the factories. After the Nile perchhas been filleted there still remains some piecesof meat on the skeleton of the fish. Due to lackof fish a new market has developed for thepieces of meat which are left on the skeleton.

Many of the traditional fish processors are nowengaged in processing the skeleton and head ofthe Nile perch. Traders purchase the skeletonsand transport them to sites where they are beingsmoked and oil-fried. The largest site for thispurpose in Kenya is situated a few miles west ofthe airport in Kisumu. Daily thousands ofskeletons are brought from the factories to thisplace by hand carriages and motorized vehicles.No doubt, some hundred traditional fish-processors have gained employment in this newtype of processing.

However, there is no doubt that the two nichescreated by the processing factories do not makeup for the thousands of jobs which have beenlost in the traditional fish processing industry.

The women fish processors are clearly losingout in relation to the export-oriented fishingindustry. Not only are the women losing out -also their children and other dependants sufferwhen the women's income are reduced or lostcompletely.

Ef fects for the fishmongers

Another group who are also losers due to theexport-industry, are the fishmongers. Almostall, at least of the small-scale fishmongers, arewomen. Traditionally the fishmongers haddeveloped relationships with particularfishermen from whom they purchased most ofthe fish. The fishmongers also had their specialmarkets in which they sold the fish. With thefactories taking an increasingly larger share of

the catch, these relationships between thefishmongers and fishermen are being severed.

The fishermen are under contract to deliver tothe purchasing agents of the factories, who alsocan afford to pay them a higher price than thefishmongers and local market.

Although the catch of fish has increased by fivetimes during the last 10-15 years, there isgradually becoming less fish to trade in for thetraditional fishmongers. The Nile perch they areleft to trade are the fish which is rejected by thefactories and the processed skeletons of theperch. If the factories also succeed to sell

Tilapia abroad they will also only be able totrade in the rejected Tilapia.

Ef fects for the consumers

It is particularly among the consumers that the

effects of the export-oriented industry can befelt. It is not possible to give precise estimateson how the level of consumption of fish haschanged during the last ten years, but manyinstitutions have expressed concern for the foodsecurity situation of the people around the lake.For many years FAO has warned about thedetrimental effects a too large export of fishmay have on the people who depend upon thefish (Greboval, 1989, 1992). Also thegovernments of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzaniahave in the "Sub-committee for the developmentand management of the fisheries of Lake

Victoria" expressed the need for studying the"impacts of modern improved fisherytechnology on the fish stock and the socio-economics of the established fisheries" and "theneed to find a balance between food use of theresources on the one hand and export andanimal feed on the other" (CIFA, 1994). Theseconcerns expressed above by the threegovernments seem to be even more relevant inlight of the recent efforts to export the Tilapia.

The food security of a population can be defined

in a number of ways, and depending on the waythe concept is defined, the methods fordocumenting it will vary. However, it ispossible to say something about the foodsecurity situation on the basis of some simpleand strong indicators. Interviews we carried outon the beaches in Kenya and Uganda in late1995 revealed that fish was no longer a part ofthe wage for the crew in the canoes. Some 15-


11/17

20 years ago it was common that the fishermen,in addition to their wage, were able to bringhome fish for consumption for their ownfamily. Interviews with crew members nowrevealed that fish was only consumed a fewtimes a week while it was part of the daily diet

some 15 years ago. Also consumers interviewedin the markets expressed that they could notafford to purchase fish as often as they did inthe past.

The remains of the skeleton of Nile perch havealways been considered "poor man's food", andmany people will not consider to eat it. Eventhis fish has increased in price and many poorpeople often cannot afford to purchase it.

The price of "whole" table fish, whether it isTilapia or Nile perch, is beyond the reach of

even middle class people. One kilogram of Nileperch may cost as much as the daily wage of agovernment servant. However, even if a personhas the available cash, it can prove impossible

to obtain the fish. Middle class people travellingregularly between Nairobi and the lake regionhave observed that the traditional fish dish isnot waiting for them when they visit theirlakeside home - nor are they able, on theirreturn to Nairobi, to bring back fish to their

friends and family in Nairobi as they didregularly in the past.

Conclusions

Although it has been difficult to presentconclusive evidence about the effects of theexport-oriented fishing industry, there aresufficient indications that large populationgroups that have depended on the traditionalfisheries in the past, are losing out. The recenttrends concerning the increased globalization ofthe Lake Victoria fishing industry only confirmthe tendencies we have discussed above. The

export-oriented fisheries is a threat both withregard to employment and food security formillions of poor people in East Africa

.


12/17

Actors at a national and international level

The development of the Lake Victoria fisherieswe have described above has taken place in acontext where national and internationalinstitutions have played a major role. Here we

will, very briefly, focus on four sets of "actors"which in their own ways, and in combination,have to a large extent influenced, and willcontinue to influence, the development of thefisheries. These institutions/actors are thegovernments of the three East Africancountries, the processing factories, theinternational market for fish and the multilateraland bilateral aid organizations.

The governments of Kenya, Uganda and

Tanzania

It is the fisheries departments of the threegovernments which have been responsible fordeveloping and implementing policies for theLake Victoria fisheries. The governments' rolein intervening in the fisheries sector had beenfairly marginal until the proliferation of the Nileperch. It was not only the fishermen who wereshocked by the rapid increase of Nile perch inthe lake, also the fisheries departments of thethree East African countries were caught bysurprise by the dramatic increase of fish in theearly 1980's. The Fisheries departmentssuddenly had to take new types of decisions

concerning the management of the lake - howmuch of the fish should be used for local humanconsumption, how much for animal fodder andhow much for export. The Fisheriesdepartments were neither staffed nor preparedto take these difficult decisions. However, thenew issues faced by the three governments weregradually accepted and reflected in theobjectives of the new fisheries policies.

The Government of Kenya's fisheries policiesclearly indicate that they are aware of thedilemma the government faces in managing the

fisheries sources of the country. Besidesmaximising the production of fish on asustainable basis, the Government has thefollowing objectives for its fisheries policy:

First and foremost, to increase the percapita consumption of fish throughproduction of low cost high protein food(fish);

Secondly, increase employmentopportunities in the country throughfishing, fish processing and fish trade;

Thirdly, to enhance the living conditions ofthe fishermen and their families bymaximising economic benefits to them.

This is achieved through provision of coldstorage, fish handling and processingfacilities;

Fourthly, to maximise export and foreignexchange earning capacity" (Government ofKenya, 1995).

Both Uganda and Tanzania have adopted similarobjectives in their fisheries policy.

As we have noted above, the three governmentsare very aware that the above mentionedobjectives are conflicting and that a balance hasto be struck between the three first objectivesand the fourth objective. There is, however,little doubt that it is the fourth objective whichhas received priority. This objective is also verymuch in line with national goals of the threeEast African countries and the objectives of thestructural adjustment programmes, stronglypromoted by the World Bank and IMF.

The processing factories

The first processing factories were establishedin Kenya in the early 1980's. They obviouslydid well, for during the next decade more than50 factories were established around the lake. Inaddition some fish processing factories were setup in Nairobi and Mombasa and the fish weretransported in refrigerated vans from thelakeside directly to the factories in these cities.

The owners of the processing factories havedifferent background. Many factories are ownedand managed by people belonging to the Asiancommunities in East Africa. Other factories areowned by multinational companies and nationalscoming from many European nations. It seemsto be a rule that the factories have employedinfluential Africans as directors. Common foralmost all the owners of the factories are thatthey have no past connection with the LakeVictoria fisheries.


13/17

The processing capacity of the factories varies,some are only able to process 3 tons of "wet,whole" Nile perch per day while others have apotential to process up to 100 tons per day. Theaverage capacity seems to vary between 5-25tons per day. It is necessary to use 3 tons of wet

fish to produce 1 ton of fillets. As we havenoted above, the present overriding problem forthe factories is to secure sufficient supplies ofraw material in order to exploit as much aspossible of the installed technical capacity of thefactories. To day the technical capacity toprocess fish are much higher than the availableraw material. This has led to a strongcompetition among the factories to get as muchfish as possible. A number of mechanisms havebeen developed by the factories in order toestablish long-term relationships with the localfishermen. We noted also that a few of the

factories recently have become more verticallyintegrated and invested in the production chain(vessels, engines and gear). Some of the factoryowners also own their transport firms. We donot, at this stage, have information of how thefactories are linked up to the firms whichpurchase the fish in the industrialised world andif any of these firms have ownership interests infactories.

Although they compete over scarce supplies offish, the owners of the factories also have jointinterests and cooperate closely. The owners of

the factories in Uganda meet once a month todiscuss matters of common interest. Thesematters relate, inter alia, to the factories'relationship to government institutions and toconditions of import of equipment and export offish. Together the owners constitute a forcefuland articulate lobby group vis-a-vis thegovernment with substantial resources at theirdisposal to influence decisions which affectthem. There is no doubt that this powerfullobby group have considerable influence indeciding where the balance between the

conflicting objectives (fish for export or localconsumption) is drawn. There is no similarlobby group representing the interests of thepopulation groups dependent on the traditionalfisheries. Except for a few NGOs, in Kenyanotably OSIENALA, the fisherfolk have no oneto represent their points of view towards themajor decision-makers.

At this stage we know little about how the profitearned from the sale of the fish fillets are beingspent. It is clear, however, that very little of theprofit is being reinvested around the lake.

The international market

The export-oriented fishing industry of LakeVictoria has been, and will continue to be, verydependent on the international market. Many ofthe processing factories have entered into long-term agreements with some of the majorsupermarket-chains in Europe and USA.According to interviews with owners anddirectors of some processing factories in Kenyaand Uganda the demand for Nile perch seems"unlimited". A managing director of aEuropean owned fish factory in Ugandainformed us that Nile perch, in 1995, wasfetching higher prices in the European market

than Atlantic cod, and that the food chains justcould not get enough of Nile perch fillets. Manyof the factories around Lake Victoria haveproblems in delivering the quantities of Nileperch which they have promised to theirpurchasers in Europe and USA, and that is onereason why the factories now also have startedto market fillets of Tilapia in the industrializedworld in order to satisfy the demand of the foodchains.

There is little doubt that the strong demand willcontinue to exist. A number of fish processing

factories in Canada, USA and Europe haveclosed down due to lack of supply of rawmaterial. In light of the reduction in the overallworld catches of fish, table fish of high qualityfrom the south will, with the strong purchasecapacity in the north, increasingly be in greatdemand in the industrialized countries.

I nternational development banks and

development aid organi zations

We still have limited information about the roleinternational development banks and bilateral

and multilateral development aid organizationshave played in the support and establishment ofthe export-oriented fishing industry. There is nodoubt, however, that the owners of many of theprocessing factories have received support interms of finance and equipment from the banksand aid organizations. Both the IFC (TheInternational Finance Corporation), the privateinvestment bank attached to the World Bank,


14/17

the African Development Bank and the EastAfrican Development Bank have provided loansto many of the owners of the factories.

Many of the bilateral development aid agenciesof the governments of the industrialized

countries have supported the factories withequipment on good financial terms. Alsovarious multilateral institutions, (FAO, UNDP,UNEP, The World Bank, GEF) have been, orwill be involved in supporting the threegovernments in planning and implementingdevelopment schemes in the Lake Victoriafisheries. Government fisheries researchinstitutes in the three countries have receivedsupport to carry out fisheries research, inparticular stock assessment studies, which cancontribute to the formulation of policies andguidelines for the sustainable management of

the fish resources.

Another area in which the development aidorganizations have been giving support, is inimproving the standard of quality of the fishproduct so that it can satisfy the requirementsset by the European Union and otherindustrialized countries outside EU. Technicalassistance has been given to advise theprocessing factories on how to achieve "ISO9002 standards" and other quality standardsrequired by the importing countries. There is nodoubt that improvements have been made and

the owners of some of the latest factories builtboast of not only being able to achieve EUstandards, but even the supposedly higherNordic standards for the product they export.All the most modem and advanced processingand refrigeration equipment have been importedfrom the north to ensure that the requiredstandards are met.

Important tasks in the efforts to improve thequality are that the fish is slaughtered andcooled in ice-boxes as soon as possible after it

has been caught. The new factories haveobtained their own fast-going transport boatswith refrigeration facilities. It is also importantthat the fish at no point in time touches theground, which happens when the fish is broughtto the landing beaches in the traditional ways.Several owners of the newly establishedfactories maintained that with the new methodsof handling the fish according to the required

standards, much less fish is being wasted. Evento-day many factories have to reject up to 25%of the fish they have purchased because the fishhave been damaged by being trapped too long inthe gill-nets and not being cooled quicklyenough. With the new technology for collecting

and preserving the fish quickly, the owners ofmodem factories estimated that only 5% of thefish they purchase will be wasted. This is goodnews for the owners of the factories, but badnews for the local population, who lately havebecome dependent on the fish rejected by thefactories. They will find it even more difficultto obtain fish.

Another method for achieving the qualitystandards required by the north, occurs whenthe skeleton of the Nile perch, with its smallpieces of remaining meat, is being converted

into fishmeal. Some inspectors fromindustrialized countries had noticed that theskeletons of the Nile perch could contaminatethe fillets for export, if the skeletons were leftinside the factories. Some factories havetherefore started to produce fish meal of theskeletons in order to comply with the requiredstandards. Also this measure contributes tomake fish less available to the local population.

Because of the scarce supply of fish for thelocal population, the price of the skeletons ofNile perch has increased. Some factories have

recently built large and tall concrete wallsaround the factories and dispose off theskeletons as quickly as possible. The skeletonsare sold outside the factory walls and in thisway do no damage to the fillets. But if qualitycontrols reveal that sale of the skeletons still arenot compatible with the required hygienicstandards, the skeletons will be turned intofishmeal.

Thus, two of the main sources of fish for poorpeople are being lost due to the efforts made to

satisfy the quality standards of the north.Although it is unintended, the aid organizationsin this way contribute to make fish lessavailable to the local population.

However, some aid organizations have alsoexpressed concern for the balance between theexport of fish and fish needed for localconsumption. In particular, FAO which has


15/17

been involved in the development of the LakeVictoria fisheries for more than three decades,has warned about the negative impacts adominating export-oriented industry will haveon food security and the employment situationfor people around the lake.

Conclusions

All the external institutions/"actors" mentionedabove have contributed significantly to build upthe export-oriented trade in fish from LakeVictoria. The major development issue theseinstitutions face is to what extent they are able

to ensure that the fish resources are harvested ina sustainable manner, and that limits are set tothe amount of fish which is exported.


16/17

Trade, environment and aid

In the introduction of this paper someinternational efforts which have been made inreconciling the interests between trade andenvironment were briefly mentioned.

OECD/DAC has during the last years proposeda number of areas where aid organizationscould play a role in supporting "green" trade.General environmental guidelines have beendeveloped for a number of sectors in theeconomy. More detailed Environmental ImpactAssessments (ElAs) and Life-Cycle Assessment(LCA) have become available and are beingused in connection with development projectswhich aim to increase export of goods. Morespecifically related to trade activities, are effortsto introduce eco-labelling schemes, adopt rulesfor packaging and recycling of the productsexported from south to north and improve theproduct and process standards of the productswhich are being exported.

In the Lake Victoria fisheries, the aidorganizations and the international developmentbanks have been engaged in several of theseabove-mentioned tasks: Modern production andprocessing equipment have been supplied,advice has been given concerning packaging andtransport of the products, and information hasbeen provided about the standards of quality

required in the north for the fish products.Although it has not been successful, measureshave also been taken by the governments anddevelopment aid agencies to propose ways inwhich the fish resource in Lake Victoria can beharvested in a sustainable way.

However, seen in relation to the fourdevelopment objectives of the Government ofKenya's fisheries policy, both the Governmentand the international aid organizations anddevelopment banks have mainly been concernedwith the government's fourth objective: to

maximize export and foreign exchange earningcapacity.

Even if it should be possible to promote export-

led trade in the Lake Victoria fisheries whichsatisfies the quality standards in the north andexploits the fish resources in a sustainable way,the three first development objectives of theGovernment of Kenya's fisheries policy are notbeing achieved, i.e., to increase the per capitaconsumption of fish, increase employmentopportunities and enhance living conditions ofthe fishermen and their families. We haveindicated in this paper that the three firstobjectives of the Government of Kenya'sfisheries policy, mentioned above, are, in fact,being undermined by the strong emphasis whichhas been put on the fourth objective, i.e. themaximization of export and foreign exchangeearning capacity.

We have seen that a framework of internationalrules and guidelines is being built up to ensurethat the export products from south to northtake environmental issues into consideration andcomply with the quality standards required inthe north. The national and internationalattention in the Lake Victoria fisheries has beenconcentrated around the Government of Kenya's

fourth objective. No similar efforts are made tocreate a framework for trade which covers thethree first objectives, i.e. objectives related tosocial rights, social equity issues, creation ofemployment, reinvestment of profit earned, etc.New institutions and policies must be developedwhich will ensure that human welfareconsiderations is also integrated into the tradebetween south and north. This is particularly thecase if this trade is to be supported bydevelopment co-operation agencies. This taskshould be a major challenge to the internationalinstitutions which are trying to promote "green"

trade.


17/17

REFERENCES

Abila, R. O. Structure, conduct and performance of Kisumu fish marketing system. M.Sc. Thesis,University of Nairobi, 1995.

Abila, R. O. The Socio-ecconomics of Nile perch frames marketing in Kisumu. Paper presented at the

FAO/KMFRI International seminar on Nile perch by- products utilization, Kisumu, Kenya, June7-] 0, 1994.

Asowa-Okwe, C. Capital and conditions of fisher labourers on Lake Kyoga and Lake Victoria canoe

fisheries. in: Uganda - Studies in living conditions, popular movements and constitutionalism,ed. by Mahmood Mamdani and Joe Oloka-Onyango, Jep Book/2, n.d..

Butcher, D.A.P. 'and J.C.G Colaris. A sociological survey of the fishermen population around Lake

Victoria. Report prepared for the Lake Victoria Regional Fisheries Research Project. Rome,FAO, FI:DP RAF/71/242/4, 1975.

CIFA (Committee for Inland Fisheries of Africa) FAO Fisheries Report No 508, Rome, FAO, 1974

FAO Management of African Inland Fisheries for Sustainable Production. Paper presented at the First

Pan African Fisheries Exhibition, UNEP, Nairobi, August 1995

Government of Kenya: 1994 Fisheries Annual Statistical Bulletin. Kenya, Nairobi, 1995

Greboval, D. Management of the new fisheries of Lake Victoria: Major socio-economic issues.

RAF/87/099/-TD/04/89. FAO, Rome, 1989.

Greboval, D. and P. Mannini, The fisheries of Lake Victoria: Review of basic data. UNDP/FAO

Regional Project Inland Fisheries Planning RAF/87/099/-WP/16/92, FAO, Rome, 1992.

Harris, C. et al. Socio-economic impacts of introduced species in Lake Victoria fisheries, The Impact of

Species in African Lakes, ed. by Prictcher and Hart, Chapman & Hall, London, 1995.

Holmboe-Ottesen, G. and M. Wandel, "Wife, today I only had money for pombe" in Household Food

Security and Agricultural Change. Institute for Nutrition Research and Centre for Developmentand Environment, University of Oslo, 1992.

Jansen, E.G. The fishing population in the Kenyan part of Lake Victoria. Report to the East African

Freshwater Fisheries Research Organization, Department of Social Anthropology, University ofBergen, 1973.

Jansen, E.G. The Development of the Lake Victoria fisheries and the possibilities of Norwegianparticipation. Eastern African Journal of Rural Development, Vol 10; Nos 1&2, pp 235-268,1977.

Ogutu, G.E.M. ed., Artisanal fisheries of Lake Victoria, Shirikon Publishers, Nairobi, 1992.

Ogutu, G.E.M. Empowering small enterprise groups for effective participation in the fisheries of Lake

Victoria, Kenya. Workshop paper presented at small scale fish systems (Kenya), presented atUkweli pastoral and development centre, Kisumu, Kenya, September 8-10, 1994.

OSIENALA, Planning for the implementation of Lake Victoria Environmental Management Programme:

A community based approach. A proposal presented at the Regional community mobilizationworkshop, Tanzania, September 12-15,1995.

Yongo, E. O. The dilemma of resource use in the Lake Victoria Basin: The Socio-economic

implications. Paper presented at the FIRI/IDRC workshop on environment, fisheries, and socio-

economic changes in the Lake Victoria Basin, November 15-20, 1993, J inja, Uganda.Yongo, E.O. Socio-economic aspects of artisanal Nile perch processors. Paper presented at the

FAO/KMFRI seminar on the utilization of Nile perch by-products, June 7-10, 1994, Kisumu,Kenya.

Documents

RICH FISHERIES - POOR FISHERFOLK Socio-Economics of the Nile Perch Fishery on Lake Victoria