http://www.fao.org/about/meetings/user-rights-2015/speakers/en/ The talk was given at UserRights 2015 (Siem Reap/ Cambodia) © FAO: http://www.fao.org

1. TENURE RIGHTS IN LARGE RIVER FISHERIES: PERSPECTIVES
AND CHALLENGES
Claudio R. M. Baigún

2. Fluvial fisheries play a critical role as livelihood thus fishing tenures
are fundamental in assuring economic growth, food security,
employment, equitable access to resources and poverty alleviation.

3. Main key differences among coastal (marine)
small scale fisheries and fluvial fisheries
• The influence of the watershed: Basin drivers have a
paramount relevance acting at different temporal
and spatial scales

5. Main key differences among coastal (marine)
small scale fisheries and fluvial fisheries
• Several large river fisheries are based on migratory
species that exhibit complex migratory patterns
coupled to flood pulses
• Fisheries performance
(species/gears/areas/stakeholders/fishing periods)
varies according to annual hyrological regime

7. • If fluvial small scale fisheries differ in a broad
sense from marine counterparts, are rights
conflicts and tenure governance processess
also different?

8. Problems
• External drivers: Artisanal fishers are facing
increasing conflicts associated with water and
land uses, such as damming, drying of
floodplains for urbanization,, agricultural and
cattle ranching practices, roads, dredging, etc.
all of which reduce fish habitats, limit access
to fishing areas and can impact on fisheries
quality.

9. • Tenure conflicts involve the waterscape
including land-water interfaces particularly in
highly pulsatile systems (Amazon, Orinoco,
Meckong, etc.) as floodplains are valuable
areas for other productive activities that may
affect/complement/compete with fishing as
livelihood

11. Large rivers fragmentation represents the most
pervasive impact affecting fisheries
sustainability, including strong changes in
tenures and fishing rights

14. How dams could affect tenure rights in
large floodplain rivers?
More dams and reservoirs will imply:
• More impounded water but less productive fisheries
• Change in catch composition that cannot be restored by fish
passages or stocking in rivers inhabited by not- salmonid
species
• Replacement of large size and high valuable species by small
and less valuable ones implying the loss of socio-economic
benefits
• The loss of traditional fishing areas and livelihoods by forced
eradication

15. Perspectives
• Climate change impacts on more vulnerable
fishers and their rights
• More deeply discussion on habitats tenure
rights as key elements for assuring suitable
access to fishing areas
• Fisheries as commodities insted of ecological
services: Recreational fisheries impacts,
fisheries for exportation (Amazon, Parana)

16. • Need to adopt an EAF/EBFM approach to
include new visions of fisheries sustainability
encompassing a basin scale perspective and
stakeholders participation in policy-making
decissions

17. Thank You