Small-scale Fisheries Management and Poverty in Developing Countries: A Bioeconomic General Equilibrium Perspectiv

Small-scale fisheries are a vital resource in developing countries. However, efforts to manage these fisheries to improve human welfare are hampered by the complex economic and biological settings in which small-scale fisheries are nested. The goal of this dissertation is to contribute to the effective management of small-scale fisheries by developing a new modeling framework that accounts for these contextual factors and heterogeneous distributional outcomes when simulating the impacts of policy interventions. I do this by building a bioeconomic local general equilibrium model that accounts for linkages between fishers, nonfishers, the local economy, and the fish population. I apply this model to a case study of a western Philippine fishing community in order to examine three questions related to small-scale fisheries in developing countries. In chapter 1, I examine whether the creation of alternative livelihoods in tourism can simultaneously reduce fishing pressure and improve local incomes for the poor in a developing-world setting. In chapter 2, I illustrate how efforts to alleviate local poverty impact local natural resources, and what welfare implications this has for different socioeconomic groups. In chapter 3, I examine the local general equilibrium impacts and distributional consequences of small-scale fisheries rationalization in a developing-world setting. Each case illustrates the importance of accounting for how the fishery is linked to local economic and ecological systems. The effects of each policy ripple through the local economy and natural environment, creating feedbacks that play a substantial role in determining the outcomes of the policies. In addition, these linkages result in distributional outcomes that extend beyond the households targeted by the policies. The modeling framework and scenarios examined in this dissertation can help policymakers navigate the economic and ecological linkages that are critical for determining the success or failure of policies related to small-scale fisheries management and poverty in developing countries.