‘Getting the Right Nutrients to Those Who Need Them Most’: towards nutrition-sensitive governance of fisheries in the Global South

Abstract

Here we propose a framework and agenda for nutrition-sensitive governance (NSG) of fisheries that rethink dominant paradigms of fisheries governance and propose measures to incorporate nutrition-related objectives into fisheries governance. Fish, rich in micronutrients, have potential for improving the nutritional status of coastal and riparian communities, particularly in the Global South where inadequate nutrition is prevalent. Yet, the potential for fish to alleviate malnutrition remains limited to policy documents and high-level government commitments. We propose an agenda for NSG in the Global South grounded in three main pillars: 1-extending the boundaries of fisheries governance, 2-integrating multiple forms of knowledge, and 3-prioritizing domestic and local needs; each of these pillars links different levels of governance starting at the level of conceptualization and images connected to what fisheries are and should do, to a more policy-oriented level with hands-on recommendations, through an intermediate level that links the two. Overall, we propose a concept and agenda for NSG grounded in a human-centred approach to fisheries governance with social sciences playing a crucial role in unearthing the nodes of power that limit access and agency of poor and vulnerable (fishing) communities to the nutritional benefits of fish. In doing so, we critically analyze dominant fisheries governance agendas (‘Blue Economy’, ‘Blue Growth’) through the lens of food and nutrition security and anchor these debates to the objective of getting the right nutrients to those who need them most.

Unlocking the potential of forage fish to reduce the global burden of disease

“…Therefore, to maximise the potential of forage fish, trade policies should be implemented to ensure that populations with higher NCD burdens and insufficient DHA+EPA intake have access to forage fish 12. For coastal countries, an agenda for nutrition-sensitive governance of fisheries in the Global South based on prioritising domestic and local needs is proposed46 47 to promote the consumption of forage fish, thus demonstrating the contribution of forage fish to global health. For landlocked countries without direct access to seafood, such as Mongolia, Turkmenistan, and other African countries, global marketing and trade in forage fish need to be expanded 14.…”

Accounting for local categorizations and classifications of fish: Towards a food-centred governance of small-scale fisheries in coastal Kenya

“…Addressing these challenges requires questioning long-standing categories, models and values behind management of sheries and oceans in general. One important way to do that is to (re)integrate multiple forms of knowledge and facilitate multidisciplinary approaches to the governance of sheries and oceans (Allegretti & Hicks, 2022). In doing so, the analysis here borrows insights from maritime poststructural social sciences (Mather et al, 2017) that deconstruct formal management categories embedded in administrations and technologies of governance (Allegretti, 2019;Johnsen, 2017).…”

“…Practices of handling, sorting, and allocating sh once caught (ie. post-harvest) signi cantly determine markets and trade subsequently but have received little attention as compared with the 'harvesting' phase in governance-based debates and action (Allegretti & Hicks, 2022;Basurto et al, 2020).…”

“…The global transition to nutrition-sensitive governance of food systems is underway (Pingali & Sunder, 2017) and so the need to revise food governance frameworks and policies using available and newly generated data and information is crucial. Burdened with food insecurity and inadequate nutrition, countries in the Global South have ample margins to bene t from more investments and consideration for sh and aquatic foods for better nutrition (Allegretti & Hicks, 2022; Kawarazuka & Bene, 2011; Muringai et al, 2022). Being rich in micronutrients, sh and aquatic foods are currently at the core of important initiatives that intend to lead a transformation in global food systems when it comes to human as well as environmental health (Golden et al, 2021;Simmance et al, 2022).…”

“…The qualities and values of sh as food for better nutritional outcomes amongst the poorer and more vulnerable are increasingly being recognized in current ocean governance debates towards better access to the right nutrients by those who need them most (Allegretti & Hicks, 2022) -shifting values and ideas around sh and sheries bring out the connections between images of sheries (Jentoft & Chuenpagdee, 2015; Kooiman, 2008), that is, what sh and sheries are and should do, to more policy-oriented debates within the current Blue Economy and Growth agendas, and counter-arguments by Blue Justice, De-growth or Human Rights advocates (Hicks et al, 2022).…”