RESOLVING CONFLICTS BETWEEN INDUSTRIAL AND TRADITIONAL FISHERS TOWARDS EQUITABLE ACCESS RIGHTS IN MADAGASCAR

Madagascar’s small-scale fisheries land 72% of the total national catch, and are the primary source of food security and income for most of the country’s 84,536 fishers, the majority of whom live below the poverty... [ view full abstract ]

Madagascar’s small-scale fisheries land 72% of the total national catch, and are the primary source of food security and income for most of the country’s 84,536 fishers, the majority of whom live below the poverty threshold.   

Contrary to international guidelines, Madagascar’s small-scale fishers have no formal rights to the marine resources upon which they depend, and no means to protect them from outside threats.  Legislation regulating industrial fishing within inshore waters is incoherent, and trawlers fish the same waters as small-scale fleets. A collapse in production of Madagascar’s industrial shrimp fishery since 2004 led to increased conflict between small-scale and industrial fishers, jeopardising economic, social and cultural rights.

Conflict resolution initiatives in recent decades resulted in little progress. A multi-stakeholder agreement in 2017 saw the creation of a pilot 500 km² inshore no-trawling zone to safeguard traditional livelihoods and rebuild stocks for the industrial fishery; this closure was discontinued after only one year, following pressure from the trawling industry.

New hopes for recognition of fishers’ rights are emerging through increasing awareness of the vulnerability of traditional coastal livelihoods. In 2017, representatives from 173 coastal communities approved a motion appealing the Government to recognize exclusive fishing zones for the small-scale sector. Reforms of national policy for marine management rights are under discussion, offering an important opportunity to further secure marine tenure for fishers.

The plight of Madagascar’s small-scale fishing communities highlights the critical need to adopt a human rights-based approach to marine spatial planning, and the resolution of cross-sector conflicts.