It might be a bit odd to use the term ‘double majority’ in the context of today – the International Women’s Day, when the concept is normally related to an election or a voting system. But it was triggered by a recent discussion at a TBTI workshop in Nepal related to the parity rule and the gender equality law that some countries, including Nepal, have in cabinet making. While it is true that much progress has been made, gender parity is far from being achieved. And in places where women are appointed to cabinet, a question remains about what ministries they are responsible for – those with important function, key authority, and real power, or not? We know there are women in key decision-making positions in many organizations, in governments, in corporations, and in educational institutions, around the world. But more is still needed, if we’re serious about achieving Sustainable Development Goal # 5 – Gender Equality. This point was raised by Yinji Li, one of the TBTI women leaders, about the situation in Japan.
Rather than being the double minority, women in TBTI are the majority, many of them are playing various leadership roles within the network. This is a nice contrast to other large-scale projects and initiatives out there. While it is inconclusive what the state of the world fisheries would be like if more women were in charge of managing them, having more women in research, capacity building and knowledge mobilization, in our case about small-scale fisheries, has helped make our programs and activities gender-sensitive. This is only fitting given the key role that women play in the entire small-scale fisheries value chain.
The theme of the 2024 International Women’s Day, as designated by the United Nations, is ‘Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress’. TBTI women, and what they say below, is a good testament of why investing in women makes a lot of sense.
Ratana Chuenpagdee
TBTI Global
Milena Arias Schreiber
I am a marine social scientist at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. I joined TBTI in 2015 when I started my research on small-scale fisheries in the Baltic Sea. Since then, I have been contributing with research articles in TBTI books and have attended and supported the organization of the last World Small-Scale Fisheries Congresses. I am currently investigating local seafood systems for the valorization of small-scale fisheries in Swedish rural coasts. In Spain, I am studying the contribution of women shellfish gathers to the well-being of coastal communities.
The description of fisheries as a male dominated activity only applies to large-scale industrial fisheries. Small-scale fisheries depends greatly on many hard working women: their efforts should be recognized, their stories should be listened and their knowledge should be respected.
Yinji Li
Dr. Yinji Li is an Associate Professor at the School of Marine Science and Technology at Tokai University. With Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, and English language skills, her research interests and expertise lie in small-scale fisheries in Northeast Asian regions, including Japan, Korea, Mainland China, and Taiwan. Li is also the TBTI Japan Research Network coordinator and a member of the International Pole and Line Foundation(IPNLF) board of trustees.
The old saying "god of the sea is a woman" was a reason to keep women away from the sea because if a woman went out to sea, the gods would be jealous and something sinister would happen. It's time to replace the old sayings with new ones and bring more women to the sea, for God's sake! Happy International Women's Day!
Raquel de la Cruz Modino
I have a Ph.D. in Social Anthropology and am an Associate Professor at the University of La Laguna, Spain. I am proud of working in coastal communities on various issues (e.g., tourism, conservation, small-scale fisheries, fish consumption, and marketing), trying to improve their governance and the quality of the local populations. My role in TBTI is linked to the market cluster, and I’ve supported the organization of different activities, such as the TBTI Symposium held in Tenerife, where I live.
Women have always been key economic agents in coastal communities. Working in small-scale fisheries or any other activities related to the sea is nothing new for us. So don't be afraid of getting involved, as there are many ways you can do this, either through fishing, researching, tourism etc.
Ranju Ghimire
As a student of MSc. Fisheries (Aquatic Resource Management) from Agriculture and Forestry University in Nepal, I am very honoured to get a chance to be a part of TBTI Global. Devotedly serving as a contributor to TBTI, I play a multifaceted role in orchestrating the e-book on small-scale fisheries and fish farming in Nepal. My responsibilities span researching, compiling content, actively collecting articles, and overseeing submissions. Collaborating seamlessly within our team, I aim to leverage my role not only in ensuring the success of the e-book but also in laying the foundation for the potential establishment of the TBTI Nepal hub, potentially a hub for the inland small-scale fisheries, in Nepal.
To all the hardworking and inspiring women in small-scale fisheries, your role in the fisheries sector is invaluable, and your perspectives are crucial for a sustainable future. Let's work towards a more inclusive, empowered, and sustainable small-scale fisheries community embracing your vital role elevating your stories, knowledge, and contributions.
Foluke O. Areola
Areola is a prolific fisheries and aquaculture professional. She has worked for 45 years, providing leadership and technical guidance in fisheries, aquaculture, research and development, strengthening institutional partnership capacities through an interdisciplinary approach. She holds roles as a consultant, administrator, facilitator, mentor, and researcher. She has participated in high-level national, regional, and global initiatives, including as a member of TBTI, promoting both human and ecosystem well-being and building strong small-scale fisheries communities, for global economic development and growth.
I salute the women in small-scale fisheries all over the world today, who work as fishers, and in the entire value chains, netminders, homemakers, wives, mothers, caregivers, teachers, researchers, scientists, administrators, and all the other professions. I encourage you in your desire and zeal to earn a living, build a career, and provide a food safety net for families, communities, and nations to strike a balance between work, family, and health. Your contributions to livelihood, food security, economic growth, and development are Too Big To Ignore.
María José Barragán Paladines
For more than 25 years, María José Barragán-Paladines, (PhD in Human Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada), has worked on marine-coastal ecosystems and the interactions between humans, marine wildlife and fisheries, within the context of marine protected areas (MPAs). Her Doctoral research was inspired by the interactive governance approach of ocean systems, MPAs and their governability. Within this period, she got involved with the TBTI initiative, within varied clusters, specially focused in the Latin America and the Caribbean context. Current research areas of interest are sustainability of marine fisheries, food security and MPAs governance. Since 2018, she has been the Science Director at the Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos Islands, position she holds until now.
By the involvement of women in small-scale fisheries research we integrate additional lenses for better understanding the complexity of this sector. It is of high value to count on women researchers looking at small-scale fisheries, not only within theoretical and methodological frames, but also at applied dimensions like decision and policy making. Small-scale fisheries should not be looked at a man-dominated space, but rather as a man-women equitable sector.
Kafayat Adetoun Fakoya
Dr. Kafayat Fakoya is an interdisciplinary researcher and consultant from Nigeria. Her focal interests include small-scale fisheries, aquaculture, gender and inclusive innovations; indigenous and local knowledge; seafood traceability, and nature-based solutions. She is a TBTI member; co-project coordinator V2V-Nigeria, Secretary, GAFS; member, Mundus Maris, and gender advisor/case study author, IHH Global Study among others.
I celebrate women in small-scale fisheries for their resilience and unwavering commitment as pillars of food and nutrition security and wellbeing in their households and communities. You are no longer invisible or unseen, and the world celebrates your contributions to sustainability of small-scale fisheries”
Alida Bundy
Alida Bundy is a research scientist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Canada where her research focuses on providing ecosystem-based science advice for sustainable oceans management. Alida uses interdisciplinary approaches to further understanding of how marine socio-ecological systems respond to change and has developed tools for research and support decision making. She has been involved with TBTI since its conception and continues to be involved, including through the use of the I-ADApt Framework.
I have just attended the 9th World Fisheries Congress in Seattle and there appear to be more women here then men, which is an amazing change that has happened through the course of my career. There are many, many issues that require research and action and there are lots of opportunities for women scientists in the natural and social sciences to contribute, especially through TBTI.
Vesna Kerezi
Vesna Kerezi is TBTI Program Manager and Communication Specialist who has been working with TBTI since 2013. A geographer by training, she holds a MSc from Memorial University, Canada. Her interests lie in human dimensions of small-scale fisheries, social science communication and knowledge mobilization. In 2023, Vesna was awarded Memorial University’s President’s Award for Exemplary Employees in the Champions of Innovation category.
From the very beginning of our career in small-scale fisheries, let's build and nurture a network of fellow female researchers and practitioners, as these are the people who will support us, guide us, and help us crash those longstanding glass ceilings. As we do so, let's enjoy the humbling and incredibly rewarding experience, and make sure that our work, regardless of how repetitive or exciting it may be on any given day, has real impact on the lives of fishing people, near and far.
Ratana Chuenpagdee
Ratana Chuenpagdee is TBTI Director and a University Researcher Professor at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s, Canada. Her research emphasizes transdisciplinary approaches to coastal fisheries and ocean governance, focusing particularly on small-scale fisheries. Aside from TBTI, she also co-leads a research module on informing governance responses in a changing ocean for the Ocean Frontier Institute, another major collaborative research.
Having studied first in Thailand, and later in US, UK and Canada, and having worked in many small-scale fisheries around the world, I greatly appreciate the importance of education and training. But it is not only about securing access to formal and informal education for girls and women, it is also about creating opportunities for women to take on leadership roles, enabling them to do more for the world with what they learn.
A perspective from Japan
0.5% of Cooperative Board Members Are Women; Zero in 19 Prefectures; MAFF Survey
KYODO NEWS (March 2, 2024)
In the 2021 fiscal year, the proportion of women among fishery cooperatives board members nationwide was only about 0.5%, according to a survey by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Nineteen prefectures do not have a single female board member. Currently, men are overwhelmingly the ones who spend long hours fishing, and there are very few female fishermen. Still, as the shortage of successors is becoming a serious issue, experts point out that “diverse leaders/bearers such as young people and women are needed to revitalize the fishing industry and local communities.”
Yinji Li
Associate Professor, Tokai University
Yinji Li
Associate Professor, Tokai University
Number of female board members in fishery cooperatives by prefecture:
The survey was conducted in 40 prefectures, including 39 along the coast and Shiga Prefecture, where Lake Biwa is located. It targeted fishing cooperatives in coastal areas approved by the governor. The data was compiled based on the FY21 business reports of 848 fishery cooperatives. According to the report, of the 8,346 board members of the 848 fishery cooperatives, 41 are women in 21 prefectures. Most were part-time auditors and directors, with only one full-time director.
Hiroshima and Kumamoto have the most people by prefecture, totaling five. Fukui, Tokushima, and Kagoshima followed with four; three prefectures, including Iwate, which had two; and the remaining 13 had one. Based on the prefecture’s gender equality plan, Kumamoto Prefecture encourages fishery cooperatives to cultivate female leaders and actively promotes women recruitment. At the Hamakebo Fisheries Cooperative in Hatsukaichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture, which specializes in clams, two of the six board members are women.
At the Oshima Fisheries Cooperative (Sakai City) in Fukui Prefecture, about half the members are ama [female free divers who collect seafood], and four out of 10 board members are women. One woman is selected from each of the five districts. In Tokushima Prefecture, the cooperatives with female board members were small-scale, and the percentage of female full members was more than 20%. In the Kagoshima Prefecture, a female executive of a fisheries-affiliated company was an auditor in a fisheries cooperative.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the number of fishery workers has halved in the past 20 years and was about 123,000 in 2022. Of these, only about 10 percent are women.
Associate Professor Yinji Li of Tokai University, who is an expert on fisheries and gender, explained the cultural backdrop for the lack of women, such as the tradition in many places that “the god of the sea is a woman, and the gods are jealous when a woman gets on a boat,” in addition to fisheries being physically demanding occupation. There are also places where the environment is unsuitable, as seen for instance in the lack of women’s toilets on boats and cooperative buildings, and the lack of fishing gear suitable for women.
However, the aging population and depopulation issues are serious. Associate Professor Li points out that “it is necessary to create and promote new initiatives such as” Umigyo,’ by utilizing the divers’ community resources including the landscapes, traditions, and culture of fishing villages, and revitalizing rural areas.’ For this reason, it is important to have diverse perspectives, as “making it easier for women and young people to enter the fishing industry will lead to fisheries sustainability.”
Former Deputy Director of the Fisheries Agency and Managing Director of the Japan Fisheries Association, Miwako Takase said: Fishers are aging and suffering from a shortage of successors and manpower. If we don’t bring in new initiatives and solutions, including women, young people, and international workers, we eventually won’t be able to continue. As the world strives for sustainable fisheries, there is still room for active roles in resource management, marketing, and product development to increase the value of limited catches. Rather than adhering to how things have been done so far, we should explore ways to make it easier for everyone to participate in the fisheries through mechanization, standardization, and data utilization.
Female students attending the TBTI TD/Writing Workshop at Agriculture and Forestry University,
Rampur, Nepal, 18 February 2024.