Fisheries Socioeconomics on the Coast of the State of Paraná (Brazil) for the Period from 2005 to 2015

Abstract

Fishing on the coast of the Paraná is a traditional activity of economically and socio-culturally importance, engaging a large number of fishers from Caiçara and Azorean origin who depend on fishing as their main source of income. Otherwise, importance of small-scale fisheries is undermined by the low availability and/or quality of information. This paper aims to describe the fisheries socioeconomics along the coastal Paraná and the changes in fisheries’ characteristics, by comparing two time period twelve years apart, from 2005 and from 2014/2015. Analysis was performed based on survey data and sampling interviews for 2005 and 2014/2015, respectively, with fishers from all fishing communities from the coast of Paraná. The fishers’ population was estimated on 5,752 people for the 2014/2015 period. There was an increase in average age influenced by a decrease in newcomers to fishing. The average income reduced along the observed time interval, possibly due to decreased production and lower positive variation in the first price fish products from estuarine areas. As a result, differences between fishers from the north-central and south-central parts of the state were observed. Despite some spatial differences, the profile of small-scale fishing has been preserved during the period analyzed. Declining conditions were also observed, resulted from reduction in new fishers taking up to the fisheries, gradual losses in value chain and the increased dependence on fishing subsides (social benefits in closed seasons).