Best for pleasure, not for business: evaluating recreational marine fisheries in West Africa using unconventional sources of data

Dyhia Belhabib (), Pierre Campredon, Najih Lazar, U. Rashid Sumaila, Braham Cheikh Baye, Elimane Abou Kane and Daniel Pauly
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Dyhia Belhabib: Sea Around Us, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Pierre Campredon: International Union for the Conservation of Nature, Bissau, Guinea Bissau
Najih Lazar: USAID/Ghana Sustainable Fisheries Management Project, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, USA
U. Rashid Sumaila: Fisheries Economics Research Unit, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Braham Cheikh Baye: Mauritanian Institute for Oceanographic and Fisheries Research, Nouadhibou, Mauritania
Elimane Abou Kane: Mauritanian Institute for Oceanographic and Fisheries Research, Nouadhibou, Mauritania
Daniel Pauly: Sea Around Us, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Palgrave Communications, 2016, vol. 2, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract West African recreational fisheries, previously overlooked, are often assumed to be insignificant, yet they are increasingly present on social media given anglers’ tendencies to document their experiences. It is important to catch the trend early on as recreational fisheries develop in order to support their sustainable development and to make the most of the alternative economic opportunities that they offer. Here, the recreational fisheries of 11 West African countries are assessed using tourist records from YouTube, blogs and other unconventional records. We introduce the concept of “Recreational-to-Commercial Ratio (RCR)”, that is, the market-equivalent value per tonne of recreational fish injected to the economy, which is similar to “willingness to pay” for fish caught for recreation. Since the recreational fisheries of West African countries gained popularity in the last few years, catches increased and reached a total of 34,000 t annually, none of which was reported in official fisheries statistics. Recreational catches through a total annual revenue of US$152 million had an RCR of approximately 7, which means that developing recreational fisheries would increase the value of fish (whether caught or released) sevenfold. These findings could have major implications for the economy and conservation of fish stocks in West African countries.

Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1057/palcomms.2015.50

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