Aquaculture Africa 2021

March 25 - 28, 2022

Alexandria, Egypt

SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD OF WOMEN IN FISHERIES VALUE CHAIN IN AKPAKA ONITSHA NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA ANAMBRA STATE NIGERIA

IKEOGU, CHIKA F*. and ENENDU, SANDRA C.

 

DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE

FACULTY OF AGRICULTURE

NNAMDI AZIKIWE UNIVERSITY

AWKA, NIGERIA.

cf.ikeogu@unizik.edu.ng

 



Sustainable fisheries have supported the livelihoods and food security of communities for millennia, playing an essential role in local economies and food security. (FAO 2020).The sustainable livelihood of women in fisheries value chain in Akpaka area of Onitsha, Anambra state Nigeria was determined by a study of the socio economic assessment of the women in the study area .The population of women was forty (40).Data collection was through administration of 40 structured structured questionnaire and scheduled interview of the women in the study area. Strength, opportunities, aspirations, and results (SOAR) analysis was used in the deduction of the strengths, opportunities, aspirations and expected results from the responses to the questionnaire and interview discussions, as shown in Table 1.1: The SOAR analysis matrix.

The study area is a fisheries landing site on the bank of the river Niger where the fishermen sell the captured fishes to the women. The women process and sell the fish to consumers. It was concluded that providing the means for these women to achieve their aspirations as expected results will go a long way in ensuring the sustainable livelihood of the women in the fisheries value chain. This could be achieved through:

  • Empowering the women financially through a microcredit scheme.
  • Providing adequate and clean environment for the women to work.
  • Providing them with more environmental friendly smoking kiln for processing fish.
  •  Sending fisheries extension officers to train and update the women on modern skills in fish processing, preservation and marketing of their productions