An Investigation into the Issues Faced by Fishing Households in Northern Province of Sri Lanka

Abstract

Fishermen in Northern Sri Lanka are still employing conventional fishing methods, while their counterparts all over the world are using state of the art techniques. In this context, this research aimed at identifying the most prominent issues faced by fisheries communities in Northern Sri Lanka. Focus group discussion was conducted in Valtatitural, a fisheries village in Jaffna District, with the active participation of 10 men and 10 women that were selected purposively. Participatory Rural Appraisal techniques (pair wise ranking and resource map) were used to gather information. According to the male respondents, the highly affected problem for fisheries sector was trawling activities carried out by Indian and Sri Lankan fishermen. When they were asked to rank things that would make them well, "having a good wife" ranked the top. Especially men highlighted that having a good wife is so important to keep all other relations very closely. Second rank was taken by good medical facilities while ownership of fishing craft and gear became the third. For women respondents, the utmost problem was the "lack of safe drinking water" although they have good alternative water sources. Next was the drunkenness of husbands which badly affected to the mental health of women. In respect of wellbeing aspirations; women ranked ownership of a house first, followed by children's education. They were keen to give a good education to their children, although they are not educated and do not possess sufficient income (3rd rank) to meet living expenditure without borrowing money. Based on these results, it is recommended that the government should adopt the place-based approaches to livelihood assistance, that are more closely aligned with local conditions and community priorities.