Challenging assumptions: the gendered nature of mosquito net fishing and the implications for management

Abstract

Mosquito net fishing (MNF) is a growing activity globally, particularly in places where mass distributions of nets are a public health policy to tackle malaria. Due to the mesh sizes used, and therefore its assumed 'indiscriminate' nature, MNF is thought to be unsustainable and a threat to both fisheries resources and biodiversity. As a consequence, MNF is widely illegal. While a body of evidence is growing as to the scale of MNF, few detailed case studies exist and none explicitly address the assumptions of ecological harm. Here, we present a first full characterization and gear comparison for MNF within the small-scale fisheries of Cabo Delgado, Northern Mozambique. The assumptions of harm to the fishery are challenged by the characterization of MNF as highly gendered in this case; with a primarily androcentric deployment method posing some risk to the fishery but a predominantly gynocentric method demonstrating possibility of limited resource overlap with other gears and little evidence of ecosystem-level impacts. The gendered nature of the fishery is discussed in terms of both risks and benefits to the fishery, with a critical need for further socio-economic assessment identified in order to guide more effective and equitable management of MNF.

Unintended consequences of sustainable development initiatives: risks and opportunities in seagrass social-ecological systems

“…Free mosquito net distribution has proven to be very efficient to reduce the rates of malaria (Berthe et al 2019), but when not used as a mosquito net or when broken, they can provide people (often women and children) with an opportunity to repurpose mosquito nets as fishing gear to enter finfish fisheries (Short et al 2020) and provide greater access to marine resources for the poor and unskilled (Berthe et al 2019). This addition effect increases the number of fishers using the seagrass resource system (i.e., provides a new way to extract fish; Fig.…”

“…Because fishing with mosquito nets potentially has ecological risks (Jones and Unsworth 2020), their use should be monitored to avoid unintended negative consequences on the environment. However, other flow effects provide short-term opportunities that alleviate poverty (e.g., provide income) and could increase gender equity (e.g., rights and access to fishing grounds; Bush et al 2017, Short et al 2020.…”

“…To identify these risks, in-depth social impact assessments are required that consider both the positives and negatives of proposed initiatives in the context of social-ecological systems. This process demands a willingness to question narratives of sustainability and reexamine existing initiatives for unintended consequences (Short et al 2020). Using adaptive approaches to implementation (Reed et al 2006), whereby we monitor more of the social-ecological system spectrum, we could increase the likelihood of identifying unintended consequences and adapting the sustainable development initiative to account for them (Olsson et al 2004).…”

“…Well-designed, robust, social-ecological monitoring would not only help to identify unintended consequences but would also help to build evidence on the types of unintended consequences that are common in similar systems. However, identifying the presence of unintended consequences in project outcomes requires robust data from all subsystems (Short et al 2020) and, ultimately, more resources allocated to such investigations.…”

Local perceptions on the state of the pelagic fisheries and fisheries management in Uvira, Lake Tanganyika, DR Congo

“…Common illegal practices include fishing from non-prohibited landing sites, fishing without a license, fishing with mosquito nets, and fishing too close to the shore (McLean et al, 2014;Petit and Shipton, 2012). Fishing with mosquito nets is the only means of access to the fisheries resource for a part of the population (Bush et al, 2017;Short et al, 2018), especially impoverished women (Short et al, 2020). However, this illegal gear targets juvenile fish (Petit and Shipton, 2012), potentially contributing to food insecurity and increased poverty (Jones and Unsworth, 2020).…”