Abstract
This article analyzed determinants of gross margin income from fishing to the rural households around Lake Ziway and Langano in Ethiopia. Four districts adjacent to the two lakes were selected purposively from which 179 respondents drawn randomly. Both primary and secondary information comprises of household structure and assets, climate factors and supportive services were organized. Data analysis employed descriptive statistics, budgetary analysis and the Ricardian method. Budgetary analysis showed positive fish gross margin income (GMI) of ETB 3,023.40 to average fisher. The Ricardian analysis made use of the climate only model (Model 1) and comprehensive model (Model 2). Using Model 1, water level raise due to inflow is vital to earn fair income in addition to the rainfall amount in Season 1, which is supported with positive impact of precipitation water level interaction on fish income. Impact of precipitation was positive in Season 3, due to meher rainfall and withdrawal of fishing labor to join agriculture that minimized over fishing. Using Model 2, precipitation water level interaction has positive impact in Season 2 due to better inflow and Meher rainfall. The interaction term was negative in Season 4 attributed to decreased water level, dry weather and less precipitation. The result also showed positive impact of household members participation, participation in the traditional financial arrangement and capacity to finance operating costs. The study highlights problems facing fishing business like: decreased lake size and water volume, lake turbidity and siltation, open access and weak institutional arrangement to guide fishing efforts, wetland farming and expansion of irrigation to the lake side, cost of fishing materials, minimum sales price as well as poor access to the fish market. Hence, strengthening fishery coperatives, awareness creation, off-farm opportunities, integrated conservation works, reduced wetland farming and acquaintance to social networks were suggested.
Highlights
Fish is highly nutritious, so even small quantities can improve people’s diets
We carried out an analysis of fish gross margin earned by households in the study year as a dependent variable using the result with climate variables only (Model 1)
Since the marginal impact of precipitation water level interaction is positive in this season, a fishing household is in a position to earn extra gross margins of ETB 30,037.00 from fishing activities in the studied year, which is significant at the 5% level
Summary
Even small quantities can improve people’s diets. Fish provides about 20 percent of animal protein intake in developing countries and this can reach 90 percent in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) or coastal areas. Fisheries can contribute indirectly to food security by providing revenue for fooddeficient countries to purchase food. Fish exports from low-income, food-deficient countries are equivalent to 50 percent of the cost of their food imports [1]. The number of people directly employed in fisheries and aquaculture is conservatively estimated at 38 million, of which over percent are small-scale fishers. Small-scale fisheries, and especially inland fisheries, have often been marginalized and poorly recognized in terms of contribution. Traditional, small-scale or artisanal fisheries are used to characterize those fisheries that were mainly non-mechanized with low level of production. The findings of the research can assist in identifying the significance of factors affecting fish income and guide policymakers and development actors in identifying priority areas of intervention to improve income from fishing activities to a given household
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