Influence of Socio-Economic Characteristics on Fishing Practices and Livelihoods in Delta State, Nigeria

This study explored the influence of socio-economic characteristics on fishing practices and livelihoods in Delta State, Nigeria. The study discussed the roles of adult males, adult females, youth males, youth females and children in the study area, the constraints faced by adult males, adult females, youth males, youth females and children in fishing activities, and the significant relationship between the socio-economic characteristics of respondents and their involvement in fishing activities. The study employed descriptive research design to explore the current status of the influence of socio-economic characteristics on fishing practices and livelihoods in Delta State, Nigeria. The study was made possible by the responses obtained from 151 respondents who are artisanal fishermen/women in Delta State, Nigeria using multistage sampling technique. The researcher elicited responses from the respondents with the aid of a self-constructed open ended questionnaire, interview and a thorough review of both empirical and theoretical literature were carried out. The findings revealed that that fish sorting, salting of fish, maintenance of fish processing equipment and smoking of fish are the fish processing activities that are engaged in by the respondents. Also, artisanal fisher folks are faced with several challenges such as insufficient fish input, poor extension service, inadequate information on fishing enterprise, and lack of credit facilities. It was equally found that religion of respondents, marital status, age, income, source of credit, family size and the years of experience in fishing activities significantly determine their level of involvement in fishing activities. It was concluded that socio-economic characteristics play a pivotal role in shaping fishing practices and livelihoods in Delta State, Nigeria. Thus, it was recommended among other things that government bodies and financial institutions must collaborate to establish specialized credit facilities tailored to the needs of fishing communities.