Improving livelihoods in fishing communities of West Sumatra: More than just boats and machines

Abstract

Despite a raft of livelihood programs designed to help Indonesian small-scale fishers there are concerns that the needs of the poor are still not being addressed. This study examines this concern through a two-pronged approach. Firstly, through a broad-scale series of interviews with fishers, community leaders and government employees in 25 fishing villages in the province of West Sumatra to identify which sectors of the fishing industry the poor operate in and the types of livelihood initiatives targeted at helping them. Secondly, by using three case studies of livelihood development projects and identifying the social, economic and institutional lessons learned that point both to best and worst practice. Three groups of poor fishers were identified; a large group of non-boat owning “labourers”, a group of “small-scale boat owners” and a small group of “processors and sellers”. Empowerment programs by the Department for Fisheries between 2005 and 2009 emphasised improving physical capital through providing fishing gear, motorisation and processing equipment. These initiatives could potentially help small-boat owners but would not benefit non-boat owning labourers. The new livelihood improvement programme GPEMP had non-fishing alternative livelihoods that could help labourers, but still demonstrated an ongoing bias towards physical capital interventions. The three case studies demonstrated that aspects of leadership, trust, advocacy, administration, accountability and ongoing institutional support are key elements of empowering coastal communities towards livelihood improvement. Human and social capital components need prioritisation in future poverty alleviation policy and programs in Indonesia, particularly for the large marginalised group of labourers.