Lake Victoria Fisheries Organization

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Empowering the Women of Lake Victoria Fisheries

Why empower women?

Empowering women and increasing their income is the best way to address poverty within households. The fisheries sector is dominated by men at almost all levels and this domination, together with the lower status of women in many cultures around the lake, means that women have not benefited from fisheries resources as much as they could.

LVFO wants to see women benefit more from the fisheries resources.

Women are very involved in fisheries and around 40% of traders and processors are women. The implementation of fisheries co-management and the formation of Beach Management Units (BMUs) provide ideal opportunities to increase the participation of women in both fisheries management and development.

What is LVFO doing?

Woman fish trader at beach

Women have traditionally been excluded from fisheries management structures and must be encouraged to become more involved, to increase the benefits they receive from fisheries resources. BMUs were initially formed in many parts of the lake in the late 1990s. At that time, BMUs were not required to have women on the committees and consequently few women were involved in running the BMUs.

National guidelines on BMUs now require that at least 3 women serve on all BMU Committees and that BMUs incorporate the concerns and priorities of women in planning and decision-making. Women also benefit from the training and mentoring of BMUs. Through representation, women benefit in the following ways:

Women should be able to speak out more and protect their rights.
Women will have a strong voice in the management of fisheries resources and in decision-making.
Women are better able to support each other and be in a stronger position to negotiate economic issues with fishermen, boat owners, traders and transporters.
Health-related issues will be tackled by women in BMUs, especially HIV/AIDS and the issue of sex for fish, benefiting both men and women.
Priorities for women will be included in BMU plans and budgets.
Through empowerment, women will be a stronger position to participate in higher level civil society organizations and in the political arena.
BMUs will be monitored to make sure the Committees are listening and responding to the views of women.

Bringing the women of Lake Victoria fisheries together

Women fish fryers

In March 2006, a regional workshop was held, with women from the beach communities around the lake, together with fisheries departments and research institutes and NGOs working with women in fishing communities. The workshop identified key issues facing women in fisheries and priorities for action. Women were most concerned about lack of access to savings and credit, lack of control over fishing crew, selling of fish on water, fluctuation of fish prices, illegal fishing and the practice of fish for sex.

A series of actions were agreed at the workshop to strengthen the participation of women in BMUs and helping them to benefit more from fisheries. These include:

Targeted training in entrepreneurship and savings and credit.
Participation in policy development and review through BMUs.
Better access to boat licenses through new licensing procedures being developed.
Recognition of the impacts of HIV/AIDS in fishing communities on women in the development of the LVFO strategy on HIV/AIDS in fishing communities.
Greater provision of Functional Adult Literacy.

LVFO will continue to work with the women of Lake Victoria fisheries and will facilitate national meetings to support networking, and to plan and monitor activities to strengthen women’s participation in fisheries management.