Opposing discourses on the offshore coexistence of the petroleum industry and small-scale fisheries in Ghana

Adjei, Moses; Overå, Ragnhild

doi:10.1016/j.exis.2018.09.006

Cited by 33 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Both non-renewable and renewable energy developments can also present significant challenges for SSF livelihoods. In Ghana, for example, smallscale fishers have been excluded from fishing within 1000 meters of foreign oil rigs and experienced physical violence by members of the Fisheries Enforcement Units [120]. In the US, the development of marine renewable energy has been rife with space-use conflicts between small-scale fishers and state and federal agencies, where fishers hold a relatively weak position in the negotiations over spatial zoning that directly impacts their livelihoods [11].…”

Section: Livelihood Impacts For Small-scale Fishersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blue growth and blue justice: Ten risks and solutions for the ocean economy

et al. 2021

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Section: Livelihood Impacts For Small-scale Fishersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blue growth and blue justice: Ten risks and solutions for the ocean economy

et al. 2021

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“…As noted above, the discovery and production of oil in Ghana was accompanied by a groundswell of euphoria about the development prospects of the resource. However, the initial euphoria is being buried in the unrealised expectations of inhabitants of the six coastal communities studied in this paper, culminating in conflicts between them and the IOCs (see Adjei & Overå 2019). Many community members believed they would receive infrastructure and financial support from IOCs.…”

Section: Dynamics Of Change In Coastal Communitiesmentioning

confidence: 95%

Ghana's petroleum industry: expectations, frustrations and anger in coastal communities

2020

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With much fanfare, Ghana's Jubilee Oil Field was discovered in 2007 and began producing oil in 2010. In the six coastal districts nearest the offshore fields, expectations of oil-backed development have been raised. However, there is growing concern over what locals perceive to be negative impacts of oil and gas production. Based on field research conducted in 2010 and 2015 in the same communities in each district, this paper presents a longitudinal study of the impacts (real and perceived) of oil and gas production in Ghana. With few identifiable benefits beyond corporate social responsibility projects often disconnected from local development priorities, communities are growing angrier at their loss of livelihoods, increased social ills and dispossession from land and ocean. Assuming that others must be benefiting from the petroleum resources being extracted near their communities, there is growing frustration. High expectations, real and perceived grievances, and increasing social fragmentation threaten to lead to conflict and underdevelopment.

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“…Further, ocean grabs have resulted in small-scale fishers losing access to traditional fishing grounds as coastal states explore offshore hydrocarbon, expand port infrastructures, marine tourism, and mining due to increasing interest by African states to harness BE potentials [68]. In Ghana, for example, the exploitation of offshore hydrocarbons has resulted in the establishment of Safety and Security Zones (SSZs), and within them the construction of oil rigs, gas pipelines, floating production storage, alongside the presence of offloading (FPSO) vessels, and supply ships, in areas that local fishers previously either fished, or used as landing sites [1]. In Cameroon, the Kribi Port project led to the displacement of local fishers, and the loss of traditional fishing grounds.…”

Section: Fisheries' Health and Their Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…First, their role and contributions are usually overlooked in the decision-making process despite their significance to the societies and national economies [82,83]. Specifically, small scale fishers are often perceived as inherently responsible for their afflictions; presented as reckless custodians of fishery resources and accountable for the resultant overexploitation [1]. In extreme cases, the neo-Malthusian logic which links overpopulation in fishing communities to overexploitation is used to justify the discriminatory governance measures [8].…”

Section: Liberia Madagascar and Somalia: Reduction Of Inshore Fishing Zones And Investment In Industrial Fisheriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Survival of the Richest, not the Fittest: How attempts to improve governance impact African small-scale marine fisheries

et al. 2022

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The sustainable use of fisheries resources is a priority of the African Union in developing the Blue Economy (BE). Growing global demand for seafood has attracted diverse actors to African waters, including Distant Water Fishing Nations (DWFNs) fleets. Complex fisheries governance challenges, unsustainable rates of fishing and rising fisheries-related crimes have ensued. To reverse these impacts, some African states are deploying various fisheries governance mechanisms. Drawing on extensive expert experiences, the review of literature, fisheries databases, international and regional agency reports, NGO and government reports and case studies from West and East Africa, we demonstrate two critical findings. First, fisheries governance mechanisms in Africa act largely to constrain small-scale fisheries (SSF) while failing to contain the industrial fisheries sector, resulting in the marginalisation of the SSF. Secondly, despite a higher incidence of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in industrial fisheries than the SSF, fisheries governance mechanisms continue to advance the 'Survival of the Richest' -the industrial sector, to the detriment of the 'Fittest' -the SSF. The SSF supports millions of jobs and is better adapted to meet the continents' nutrition and socio-economic security. For the fisheries sector to contribute to the sustainable development of Africans, states must redirect governance towards regulating the industrial sector, emphasising equitable access for the SSF whilst prioritising ecological sustainability.

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Opposing discourses on the offshore coexistence of the petroleum industry and small-scale fisheries in Ghana

Cited by 33 publications

References 25 publications

Blue growth and blue justice: Ten risks and solutions for the ocean economy

Blue growth and blue justice: Ten risks and solutions for the ocean economy

Ghana's petroleum industry: expectations, frustrations and anger in coastal communities

Survival of the Richest, not the Fittest: How attempts to improve governance impact African small-scale marine fisheries

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