An interesting FAO GLOBEFISH study, GLOBEFISH report: The
role of women in the seafood industry was released last May.
Women are essential contributors to the seafood industry,
including primary activities, secondary industries and service related to
fisheries and aquaculture.
At the global scale, estimates illustrate that every one
seafood worker out of two is a woman.
In many African coastal communities, the work of the
fishermen is done when they return from fishing, but the women’s
responsibilities for cleaning, processing, smoking and selling the fish at
market begin as soon as the fish are landed
While men continue to dominate capture fisheries –
particularly offshore and industrial fishing women across all regions are
often relegated to processing, local sale and support roles, including cleaning
boats and bringing fish to market.
These jobs are typically lower paid – in some cases unpaid –
and less recognized for their contribution to the economy, employment and food
security. Too often, the unofficial status of this work does not afford the
women performing it to access the credit and financial resources that could
make her work more efficient.
But the study points out that it is not only an issue
limited to small-scale fisheries in developing countries. The publication also examines the situation in developed
countries, illustrating the frequent lack of consideration for women’s role and
work in the industry, their invisibility to industry players and policy makers,
and their surprising absence in the boardrooms and executive positions of major
seafood companies.
This is occurring even as women’s management positions in
compatible global food industries is visibly improving. Women in Côte d’Ivoire spend long days over traditional
smoking ovens
Out of the world’s 100 top seafood companies, only one
company is currently run by a woman as CEO.
At a time when the industry must sustainably scale up
production to meet a growing demand, companies need to select the best
candidates, and cannot afford to exclude 50 percent of tomorrow’s potential
leaders.
Source: FAO
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