Investigation into factors affecting compliance with fishing regulations a case study of Mafia and Ukerewe fishing communities, Tanzania

Abstract

The sustainability of natural resources is the target of every government or state. There is concern on the persistent illegal fishing practice especially in small-scale fisheries all over the world. To respond to this, fisheries management authorities have enacted regulations and revised them periodically but little success has been achieved. In Tanzania, fisheries authorities have and continue to acknowledge that illegal fishing is a major threat to the achievement of a sustainable fishery. The authorities have enacted and enforced laws but still the threat posed by illegal fishing continues to escalate. What is it that makes fishers not to comply with fishing regulations (break the rules)? This is what this dissertation focused on. To generate an understanding on this non-compliance, this study employed experimental game and a survey with fishing communities in the Mafia and Ukerewe islands. The experiments involved two scenarios: illegal fishing with no institution regulating the fishery (no enforcement), and illegal fishing with enforcement. The results indicate that age of the fisher, the dependency burden, education level, number of years of experience as a fisher and the perception of the effect of illegal fishing by others on personal catch are the major reasons for compliance with fishing regulations. The study therefore recommends that to effectively manage the fishery resource, strict management institutions and objective bodies are needed to ensure fishing rules and regulations are adhered to by fishers.