Aquaculture systems are commonly regarded as the domain of men. But in Stung Treng Province in northeastern Cambodia, women are engaging an intensive small-scale aquaculture system called the WISH-Pond (Water and Fish) along with men. Through participatory methods of community science, women are becoming highly involved in both fish farming and the research process designed to test and improve the WISH-Pond model.
In Cambodia, fish constitute a vital source of dietary protein, accounting for up to 85% of total protein intake. The National Fisheries Administration (FiA) is planning a massive expansion in aquaculture production, aiming to produce 300,000 tonnes of fish per year by 2020, up from 40,000 tonnes in 2008. Currently, the most popular model for improving food security among poor rural households is extensive pond culture. The ponds vary in size from 80 – 300 square meters and families use mostly on-farm products as feed. The fish they raise are primarily used for household consumption.
But a study titled, Aquaculture for the Poor in Cambodia: Lessons Learned, conducted in 2010 by WorldFish (a member of the CGIAR Consortium) found that many poor farmers do not have enough land to build ponds on this scale. They also lack the cash to buy feed and fingerlings. As a result, extensive ponds developed through programs are not sustainable, and frequently become unproductive once project support is withdrawn.
In comparison, the WISH-Pond model is more intensive and small scale. The ponds range in size from only 8-20 square meters. They are made of plastic sheeting or cement and are stocked more intensively (600 fish per pond) than conventional methods. While larger-scale production typically includes several different types of fish, the WISH-Pond system concentrates on just one, the pangasius catfish (Pangasius hypophthalmus). The system can yield three times more fish per unit area than the extensive ponds.Feed sources include commercially-produced pellets (40 per cent), natural feeds such as termites and snails (50 per cent) and by-products from rice farming (ten per cent). The aim is to produce enough fish for both family consumption and income generation.
Women are primary targets of the WISH-Pond aquaculture system. Pond management can be seen as a natural extension of women’s domestic tasks. The potential for generating greater food security and income for the family is also within the natural purview of women’s roles. WorldFish, the FiA, and a local NGO called the Culture and Environmental Preservation Association (CEPA) are investigating the costs and benefits of the system, particularly for women. They also are seeing how the use of a community science method, which combines Action Research and Participatory Action Learning, can help women adapt the system to their needs, get maximum benefits from the government’s aquaculture expansion programme, and inform the research and development process for the WISH-Pond model.
Community science actively engages local people in the research process. It supports them to identify research questions, design studies, collect and analyze data, and apply the results. In Action Research, external researchers have a greater role in defining the scope of study, and outputs are more generally applicable to development processes. In Participatory Action Learning, the community has a stronger role in defining the research; approaches that work are chosen and adopted by the community as part of the process.
To better understand the costs and benefits of the WISH-pond system, participating farmers were asked to complete a daily data record. Since many are illiterate, they used a picture-based monitoring sheet over the three-month span of their first production cycle. The data included both financial costs and those associated with time spent on different tasks. Information included costs associated with pond construction; provision of feeds, including time spent foraging for natural feeds; maintaining fish health; and harvesting data such as quantities of fish produced, consumed, and sold. The data collection was done by gender, to assess the division of labor between men and women in different activities.
“I record all the information on fish raising every day,” says Mom Sithorn of Kamphon village. “For example, how far and where I go to look for natural feed, and how much time spent on it. We used to spend almost the entire day trying to catch fish for cooking, but we only spend about one or two hours to look for fish feed; thus we save time for other housework.”
The data were used to inform discussions about how the systems could be made more efficient. The women involved in the project were keen to discuss the results with other women, and to take part in training activities on fish rearing. In contrast, men did not take part in capacity building and preferred to focus on other farming activities or wage labor away from the village.
The community science method helped foster innovation among the participating farmers. They discussed and used the information from the cost/benefit analysis to develop their own lower-cost construction methods for the ponds. Women, in particular, favored the building of cement ponds. Not only were they easier to manage but they also provided a useful water store for vegetable gardening, which tends to be women’s responsibility.
Based on data in the daily recording of activities, women appeared to be fully engaged in the aquaculture system. They also improved their knowledge and skills, along with the ability to make their own choices, increase their sense of self-reliance, and propose creative solutions to improve the system. Their records and active participation provided reliable data for the research team to understand how the WISH-Pond system could be adapted and introduced more widely.
The outcomes for women also included greater access to credit. Women were the ones to liaise with the village savings group, through which they received loans to establish their ponds. Women also took responsibility for taking on further credit or making repayments. Many women in the group chose to invest directly in a second production cycle, even in the less favorable dry season, and to expand or improve their ponds.
The community science activities and capacity strengthening has increased the women’s self-confidence, levels of knowledge, and ability to form support networks with other producers. Their fish production has brought a new source of income and food security, reducing their need to look for casual labor outside the home.
Though only conducted on a small scale, the WISH-Pond system appears to offer exciting lessons on the value of community science in empowering women and enabling them to make informed choices that can improve their lives.
Currently, the project is moving to its third phase, with plans to scale out the WISH Ponds to other target areas in Stung Treng, Kampot, and Kep, Cambodia. In addition, the Action Research method to empower women and analyze costs and benefits of livelihood activities is being used by partners in other sectors, such as agriculture production, home gardening, livestock, and access to markets. The project is funded under the Westland Alliance with Sida funding.
Post adapted from the New Agriculturist article: “Learning and earning – women in aquaculture” and from the WorldFish report: Joffre, O., Kura, Y., Pant, J., and So, N. (2010). Aquaculture for the Poor in Cambodia – Lesson learned. The WorldFish Center, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. 16pp
Photo credit: Chea Seila/WorldFish
For more information
Aquaculture for the Poor in Cambodia – Lessons Learned (WorldFish)
Learning and earning – women in aquaculture (New Agriculturist)
Gender and aquaculture:Sharing the benefits equitably (WorldFish)