Gender analysis of the SciCOFish project and identify specific implementation activities

The Gender Objective for the SciCOFish project is to increase the benefits from the fisheries sector for women by increasing women’s participation in different areas of oceanic and coastal fisheries science and management. To measure this it is necessary to bench mark the current situation so that increases can be detected at the end of the project.

A gender analysis is being conducted and three countries have been chosen: Solomon Islands (Melanesia), Marshall Islands (Micronesia) and Tonga (Polynesia) as representative to detect any cultural differences. Consultants are going to:

1. Conduct an initial literature review of gender roles in the fisheries sector in the Pacific with a focus on the three selected countries.

2. In the three selected countries, collect and analyse sex disaggregated data in the following areas of involvement (either employment or other participation in the public sector, private sector, NGOs etc), in the following fields: tuna fishery observers and port samplers (including the selection process), collection of any type of monitoring data in coastal fisheries (community, provincial and national), data entry (oceanic and coastal), fisheries biological and/or ecological research (oceanic and coastal), data analysis and stock assessment (oceanic and coastal), fisheries management (oceanic and coastal), post harvest in coastal fisheries.

3. Identify and assess factors nationally that form barriers for women’s participation in the above fields of work in each of the three countries; including an analysis of national sectoral policies, legislation and regulatory frameworks, workplace environments, social and economic systems, and customary practices and beliefs for fisheries.

4. Identify specific approaches and measures to address barriers to women that are identified in the above fields of work, and identify opportunities for specific interventions in each of the three countries.

5. Develop a gender mainstreaming toolkit for increasing women’s participation in fisheries science and management with gender indicators.

6. Report back to the stakeholders in each of the three countries to ensure a participatory approach and national buy-in to the results.

7. Produce a report of not more than 20 pages summarising the above with recommendations on approaches to achieve the gender objective of this project.

8. As an annex to the report, provide a database of key resources for mainstreaming gender in the fisheries sector: a structured list with links to sector-specific toolkits, manuals, analysis etc.

For more information, please contact Lindsay Chapman, Coastal Fisheries Programme Manager