INTEGRATED COASTAL DEVELOPMENT (ICD): AN ALTERNATIVE FOR THE ORGANIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARTISANAL FISHERIES SUBSECTOR

Abstract

Artisanal fisheries has been since long the subject of interest for social scientistsand national planningagencies because it representsoneof the last exampleofactivities forsustenance basedon the hun tingo! the wild resources. Recently, this interest has increased because the importance of the artisanal fishery for fresh food supplies for human consumption and becauses of the overexploitation of Coastal resources which has resulted in a stagnation and even a decrease of the fish consumption in poor developed communities. The possibility of utilizing the fishermen manpower, the experience in dealing with the marine environment and the use of marine technologies availables for the artisanal fishermen, requires of a conceptual frame and a coherent plan that we cali “Integrated Coastal Development” (ICD). This plan will allow to coordínate the effort of the different disciplines and elemenls involved in the development process of the artisanal fisheries sector. The disciplines are mainly from the social area of biological (bioecology) and social Sciences (e.g. sociology.anthropology, economic) and the elements are the Fisheries Resources, the Technologies utilized in the production process, and the Fishing community where this process takes place. These three elements are interrelated and interact creating new fields where concrete actions are required. A conceptual model in proposed and the elements and the interactions are described. The model proposed is being utilized as a frame for the activities that the Fisheries Program of the IDRC-Canada is implementing in collaboration with research institutions in Latin America.