Socio-Economic Perspectives of Transition in Inland Fisheries and Fish Farming in a Least Developed Country

Vincent-Paul Sanon, Raymond Ouedraogo, Patrice Toé, Hamid El Bilali, Erwin Lautsch, Stefan Vogel and Andreas H. Melcher
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Vincent-Paul Sanon: Institute for Development Research, BOKU—University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Strasse 76, 1190 Vienna, Austria
Raymond Ouedraogo: Department of Environment and Forests, Institute of Environment and Agricultural Research (INERA), Ouagadougou 04 BP 8645, Burkina Faso
Patrice Toé: Institute for Rural Development, University Nazi BONI, Bobo-Dioulasso 01 BP 1091, Burkina Faso
Hamid El Bilali: International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM-Bari), via Ceglie 9, 70010 Valenzano (Bari), Italy
Erwin Lautsch: Institute for Development Research, BOKU—University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Strasse 76, 1190 Vienna, Austria
Stefan Vogel: Institute for Sustainable Economic Development, BOKU—University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Feistmantelstraße 4, 1180 Vienna, Austria
Andreas H. Melcher: Institute for Development Research, BOKU—University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Strasse 76, 1190 Vienna, Austria

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 5, 1-34

Abstract: Small-scale inland fisheries are essential for livelihoods and food security in developing countries such as Burkina Faso. However, there is a gap in research on the ongoing transformation of the sector toward sustainability. This article analyzes the transition in inland fisheries and aquaculture in Burkina Faso and its implications in terms of natural resources management, food security, and livelihoods. We used the Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) method as a reference transition framework and sampled using a mixed approach including 63 qualitative interviews, with fisheries experts and stakeholders, as well as quantitative data gathered through a representative survey with 204 fishermen’s households. We examined open access, concession, and co-management fisheries systems. Our results show that technical and institutional changes in fisheries over the last decades deeply shaped and transformed fisheries governance. Technological changes improved the sector’s productivity and its contribution to households’ livelihoods. Fishermen’s households consume up to 25% of fishermen’s catches. The share of the catches consumed is typically higher when commercial fishing is “not important”, but it remains typically low when it is “very important”. The income is higher for fishermen who allocate more time to or gain more income from animals breeding. The establishment of state-based management affects the balance between the coexisting traditional and newer “republican” institutions. Concession and co-management niches can contribute to the empowerment of the stakeholders and establishment of more effective management. However, they are still dominated by the traditional and centralized state regimes and governance. The support of the socio-technical landscape is paramount for the scaling-up of the fish farming niche, which has the potential to improve food security and sustain rural livelihoods in the least developed country, Burkina Faso.

Keywords: sustainability transitions; artisanal fisheries; aquaculture; livelihoods; food security; multi-level perspective; Burkina Faso; LDC (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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