Interplay between changes in fishery and social dynamic in coastal fishing communities of Tanzania

Abstract

Fishing communities constantly change and adapt to modifications in their environment, which are reflected by changes in variables related to fishery. However, the impact of these quickly changing fishery patterns on social dynamics of artisanal fishing communities in the Western Indian Ocean has been poorly investigated. This article looks at how communities have been affected by recent developments, technological and social changes in the fisheries sector and the mechanisms that people use to cope with those changes in Mtwara, Tanzania. Data were derived from semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, participant observations, and reviews of literature and policy documents. Our results indicate that the studied fishing communities have significantly changed their fishing techniques, strategies and social organization. Moreover, the traditional traps and line fisheries have increasingly been replaced by fishing nets and motor operated boats to compensate for the declining size of fish catches. There is a shift from collective communal fisheries to individual and private fishing groups. There are now far fewer skilled fishermen who are experts in the art of traditional fishing and finding a father who teaches his son the same art is exceptional. The present day problems facing the fisheries sector are different from problems these fisheries have previously faced, and pose a threat not just to the livelihood of individual fishers but to the collective way of life and the coastal communities.