Multi-Actor Collaboration in Improving the Economy of the Fishing Community in Karangantu Coastal Area of Serang, Indonesia

Abstract

The fishing community is a community that is strongly dependent on the sustainability of marine natural resources. Indonesia is the largest archipelagic country in the world and has a wealth of marine economic potential. Karangantu Coastal Area, Serang City is located on Banten’s North Coast which has a fairly good marine potential and has a National Fishing Port (PPN) which is a type B fishing port in Banten Province. These advantages were why PPN Karangantu was appointed as a fisheries industrial area (formerly a minapolitan) for the catch fisheries subsector since 2010. However, facts show that this potential is still not well-managed and thus does not yet have a significant effect on improving the fishing community’s welfare. Until this article was written, poverty and the fishermen remains an unresolved issue. To resolve the problem there needs to be a collaboration between multiple actors: the government, the private sector, the public communities, and the fishing community should work together and encourage policies regarding the coastal community economic empowerment through the development of a mutually profitable fishermen group joint business endeavor which would have a significant effect on the people's welfare, especially the fishing community in Karangantu Coastal Area, Serang City. The present study is a descriptive qualitative study. Data were collected in three ways: interviews, observations, and documentation. The data analysis for both primary and secondary data was conducted with the Nvivo 12 Pro software. The study results indicated potentials that could significantly improve the economy of the fishing community in Karangantu Coastal Area, Serang City, especially in the fisheries and tourism sectors. However, this can only be realized if there is a collaboration between actors, including the central and regional government, business actors, environmental NGOs, and the fishing community.