Struggles for inclusive development in small-scale fisheries in Paraty, Southeastern Coast of Brazil

Abstract

This article discusses challenges in fostering participation of marginalized actors in coastal fisheries governance in Brazil. Recent changes in the institutional architecture of fisheries governance have opened new spaces for the participation of small-scale fishers to influence setting of the policy agenda, management practices, and monitoring strategies. However, the participation of local users has been opposed by conservationist policies, which limit their access to fishing grounds. Small-scale fishers' involvement has been characterized by tensions between participatory spaces provided within bureaucratic structures and claimed participatory spaces built from below. This article analyzes fisheries governance in the municipality of Paraty, Southeastern Coast of Brazil, with a focus on three institutional innovations implemented by the government to promote social participation - Fishing Accords, Terms of Agreement, and Management Councils of Protected Areas. Although these innovations are important for the recognition of small-scale fisheries as compatible with conservation policies, problems such as low institutional capacity, power imbalance, limits of decentralized governance, and lack of long-term financial resources remain as challenges for the consolidation of an inclusive development model for coastal fisheries in Brazil.