STEP Seafood Trade, Ecosystems and People Preliminary Report: An analysis of small-scale fisheries value chains, market structure and effects of this on benefit flows and distribution in the Western Visayas

Small-scale fishery governance has often taken a narrowly approach to sustainability, focusing either on managing fishing activities, or market-based interventions and overlooking the embeddedness of fishers within a broader social structure. This project uses a value chain approach to address these gaps. The aim is to improve our understanding of the interplay between fisheries governance and market dynamics, and the effects of this on benefit flows and distribution of marine ecosystem services. This report contains preliminary results and examines the social dynamics among fishers and traders that may impact benefit flows and ultimately resource extraction decisions. The data presented in this report form part of a larger project also aiming to uncover the role of seafood markets and market actors, like traders, in mediating interactions between the social and ecological components in local Small-Scale Fisheries systems. * SSF here include both municipal and commercial fisherie