The spotlight on fishery, like farming, has always been traditionally trained on men. In the backstage are the women who, while they may not work on the front lines, are just as hardworking as the men and whose work on the sidelines is equally important as going out to the sea and casting the net.
Fishery is the second most valuable agricultural sector, and in the Mekong Region where the waters of the Mekong River flow through six countries, fishery is an integral economic activity. Around 80% of the people living in the Lower Mekong Basin are said to rely on the river for their sustenance and livelihood, yet there is few data to show the percentage of women – and their work – in the fishery industry in the region.
Valuable but overlooked
The involvement of women in fishery has always been land-based because they have always been expected to stay at home and perform household work. But while actual fishing is an activity for the men, marketing of the fish catch is an exclusive work of the women. A report from the Mekong River Commission (MRC) noted that such role is essential because while the men catch the fish, it is the women who control how much the family will earn as they know what fish can be sold for a higher or lower price in the market.
They are also involved in other activities like repairing fish gears, fish sorting, fish handling and fish processing. In Lao PDR and Cambodia, for example, it is the women who repair the fish nets and process the fish either for household consumption or for selling.
Theo Visser in his report titled, “Women as a Source of Information on Inland Fisheries” also underscored the role for women as information gate-keepers and sources, pointing out that in sectors like farming and fishery, the women often have more information than the men.
The participation of women in decision-making in the fishery sector and in fishery activities has also been traditionally low. In the MRC report, it was found that the percentage of females working in the fishery ministry or departments of their countries is only about one-third, and the percentage of women occupying policy making positions in these offices is less than 20% on the average.
Capacitating women in fisheries
A growing trend worth noting is the so-called “feminization of fishery”, a phenomenon caused by the work shift of many men fishers from fishery to industrial work, and therefore leaving the fishing to their wives. This trend only further emphasizes the need for more training and learning opportunities for women and providing them improved access to information and technology.
The creation of national networks for women in fisheries in the Mekong countries is a major milestone for the women fishers of this region. These national networks (Cambodia Women in Fisheries Network in 1997, the Vietnamese Women in Fisheries Network and the Lao Women in Fisheries Network in 1999, and the Thai Women in Fisheries in Network in 2000) have helped women in the fishery industry achieve better conditions for their household through training programs and credit access, among others.
However, much still needs to be done.
The challenge continues
Just like in farming, women in fishery have always been cast in a supportive yet complementary role with men. What we need are stronger ways to enhance the information exchange on the work of women in fishery.
More in-depth information on the status, conditions and challenges faced by women in the fishery sector will facilitate the development of necessary programs, interventions and policies to alleviate and support their plight.
For one, both the MRC and Kyoko Kusakabe’s report stress the need to address women’s access to information and resources to give them greater participation in decision-making. Kusakabe also pointed out that extension technologies have always been traditionally packaged for male end-users, and those for women are often small scale technologies that do not bring about a big jump in improvement or yield. According to her, fishery extension programs should give women “wider choices” and “access to better technologies.”
Finally, Kusakabe in her report also pointed out another issue worth noting, succinctly captured in the following questions:
How much of women’s work is reported by men? Are women’s contributions to the fisheries seen as important by other members of the family? How much do men think women know about fisheries?
Indeed, just as we talk about wider access and greater recognition of women’s contribution to the fishery sector, Kusakabe’s questions also serve as a reminder that one of the true marks of the recognition of the role of women in this agricultural activity is also best determined in the valuing accorded to them by the men they support and work with, tide in and tide out.
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