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Understanding Vulnerability of Urban Waterfront Communities to Rapid Development: The Case of Lagos Lagoon, Nigeria
Abstract
Inland capture fisheries have long been an important source of food and livelihood security for communities around the world. However, rapid urbanization and lack of land tenue in many developing countries are major threats to the contributions of small-scale fisheries to society. With increasing emphasis on Blue Growth as the answer to stagnant economies, the interaction of various Blue Economy sectors has implications for the most vulnerable populations. The resulting justice issues call for better regulation and stronger governance. Nigeria’s Lagos Lagoon is a case in point, known for its historically rich and abundant fish supply and as the main inland waterway facilitating transportation, communication, and commerce. However, the forces of urbanization and commodification are threatening urban waterfront communities of the Lagoon. Understanding the impacts of urbanization and associated industries on residents who rely on small-scale fisheries is paramount to advancing a Blue Economy that is equitable and socially just. This chapter brings these considerations to the forefront by exploring the interactions of sand mining, fishing, and urban development in the waterfront communities of Lagos Lagoon. We use Interactive Governance Theory to unpack the threats to urban small-scale fisheries from rampant Blue Growth and craft solutions to this ‘wicked’ problem.KeywordsUrbanizationWaterfront developmentSand miningFisheriesLagos LagoonInteractive Governance Theory
... However, accumulating stressors are causing significant changes to fish and invertebrate populations' productivity and habitats, thereby limiting the ecosystem services provided by the ocean [5][6][7]. Over 2.7 million artisanal fishers in developing countries are vulnerable to shocks from fisheries declines because of limited alternative livelihood opportunities and lack of adaptation options and policies [8][9][10]. According to Deeg [11], an estimated number of 19 million women fisherfolk in small-scale fisheries (SSF) are also exposed to climate risk. ...
Gender equality has been a key consideration for policymakers and natural resource managers in assessing climate risk and developing effective adaptation strategies. However, the interests and concerns of women in relation to climate-related planning and fisheries policies are often neglected. This underrepresentation of women, particularly from developing countries, poses a risk of overlooking opportunities to support vulnerable fishing communities. Additionally, it inadvertently increases the vulnerability of marginalized women fisherfolk. This paper reviews 122 refereed publications on the empowerment of local fishing communities, gender participation in fisheries governance, development, and the need to consider gender dimensions in climate adaptation programs worldwide. It highlights the socioeconomic impacts of climate change on livelihood and discusses potential adaptation measures. The findings support the adoption of frameworks and policies that provide alternative metrics for women's empowerment, inclusion in fisheries govern-ance, and climate adaptation strategies. The study also offers recommendations for governments, non-governmental organizations, and development agencies responsible for fisheries governance and climate adaptation initiatives.
... The natural resources on which small-scale fishing communities in Sub-Saharan Africa depend are crucial for both their economic sustainability and as a nutritional resource in challenging times (Brashares et al. 2014;Fakoya et al. 2022). Yet, the widespread depletion of fish stocks across the continent (Belhabib et al. 2015;Okafor-Yarwood et al. 2019) results in numerous adverse socio-economic and developmental consequences, including abusive labour conditions, food and nutrition insecurity, harmful fishing practices, and fish-for-sex exchanges (Belton and Thilsted 2014;Elegbede et al. 2023aElegbede et al. , 2023b. ...
The natural resources on which small-scale fishing
communities in Sub-Saharan Africa depend are crucial
for both their economic sustainability and as a nutritional
resource in challenging times. Yet, the widespread depletion of fish stocks
across the continent results in numerous adverse socio-economic
and developmental consequences, including abusive labour
conditions, food and nutrition insecurity, harmful fishing
practices, and fish-for-sex exchanges.
... Indigenous local groups have historically used marine living resources for economic, social, medical and cultural interests (Elegbede et al. 2023a, b;Oloko et al. 2023;Fakoya et al. 2022;Malorgio et al. 2017;Warne 2014). Fishing served as a link between people and their sociocultural capital, values and customs. ...
In the Global South, small-scale fisheries may be highly influenced by taboos and traditional beliefs that are believed to maintain fishing pressure within sustainable limits, maintain ecosystem balance and mitigate risks associated with work at sea. However, despite their potentially significant role in mediating human-resource interactions, limited attention has been given to taboos in the context of small-scale fisheries. Among the socio-cultural taboos shaping participation in and benefits from fisheries activities, gender-specific taboos are particularly significant. Thus, this paper explores the role of gender taboos in sustainable and equitable small-scale fisheries management in the Global South. It also identifies and assesses the quality and scientific rigor of the key themes from the literature. A systematic literature review was conducted to assess the state of knowledge on taboos and small-scale fisheries and situate the role of gender-specific taboos within small-scale fisheries governance. Over 100 relevant publications were obtained and categorised using scanning and selection methods. The main emerging themes from the literature review included traditional ecological knowledge and taboos, conservation and management taboos, and gender taboos. The findings highlight the significance of taboos in shaping gender dynamics, livelihoods, and food security within small-scale fisheries; however, there remain many gaps in understanding the role of taboos in mediating fishing activities and in maintaining gender inequalities in the fisheries sector. Without this knowledge, gender inequalities could be further exacerbated where taboos are used as a management tool without considering the gender dimensions. This study, therefore, seeks to fill this gap by providing insights for fisheries managers and practitioners for managing fisheries in a way that considers these socio-cultural factors that shape access to, control over and the benefits derived from fisheries.
... Chile, for example, small-scale fishers have been forced out of marine spaces required for their livelihoods by the infrastructure required for desalination projects (Campero et al., 2022). Similarly, small-scale fishers have been displaced and excluded from coastal governance processes by the commodification of the Lagos Lagoon in Nigeria (Fakoya et al., 2021). ...
The term “blue justice” was coined in 2018 during the 3rd World Small-Scale Fisheries Congress. Since then, academic engagement with the concept has grown rapidly. This article reviews 5 years of blue justice scholarship and synthesizes some of the key perspectives, developments, and gaps. We then connect this literature to wider relevant debates by reviewing two key areas of research – first on blue injustices and second on grassroots resistance to these injustices. Much of the early scholarship on blue justice focused on injustices experienced by small-scale fishers in the context of the blue economy. In contrast, more recent writing and the empirical cases reviewed here suggest that intersecting forms of oppression render certain coastal individuals and groups vulnerable to blue injustices. These developments signal an expansion of the blue justice literature to a broader set of affected groups and underlying causes of injustice. Our review also suggests that while grassroots resistance efforts led by coastal communities have successfully stopped unfair exposure to environmental harms, preserved their livelihoods and ways of life, defended their culture and customary rights, renegotiated power distributions, and proposed alternative futures, these efforts have been underemphasized in the blue justice scholarship, and from marine and coastal literature more broadly. We conclude with some suggestions for understanding and supporting blue justice now and into the future.
The future of the global ocean economy is currently envisioned as advancing towards a ‘blue economy’—socially equitable, environmentally sustainable and economically viable ocean industries1,2. However, tensions exist within sustainable development approaches, arising from differing perspectives framed around natural capital or social equity. Here we show that there are stark differences in outlook on the capacity for establishing a blue economy, and on its potential outcomes, when social conditions and governance capacity—not just resource availability—are considered, and we highlight limits to establishing multiple overlapping industries. This is reflected by an analysis using a fuzzy logic model to integrate indicators from multiple disciplines and to evaluate their current capacity to contribute to establishing equitable, sustainable and viable ocean sectors consistent with a blue economy approach. We find that the key differences in the capacity of regions to achieve a blue economy are not due to available natural resources, but include factors such as national stability, corruption and infrastructure, which can be improved through targeted investments and cross-scale cooperation. Knowledge gaps can be addressed by integrating historical natural and social science information on the drivers and outcomes of resource use and management, thus identifying equitable pathways to establishing or transforming ocean sectors1,3,4. Our results suggest that policymakers must engage researchers and stakeholders to promote evidence-based, collaborative planning that ensures that sectors are chosen carefully, that local benefits are prioritized, and that the blue economy delivers on its social, environmental and economic goals.
The world will not reach Sustainable Development Goal 2 ‘Zero Hunger’ by 2030 unless we address micronutrient deficiencies, particularly amongst infants and children in developing countries. Fish are nutrient-rich and are valued to improve diet quality. We examined the diets of 6328 children in rural sub-Saharan Africa. Most children had inadequate diet diversity. Of those that did have higher diet diversity, 20% relied on eating fish from nearby inland fisheries as their only flesh food. Results suggest that food systems failed to provide fish or other flesh foods to 65% of rural children. To improve diet quality of children living more than 5 km from inland fisheries, strategies are needed to extend the reach of fish value chains and improve access to fish.
The oceans are increasingly viewed as a new frontier for economic development. Yet, as companies and governments race to capitalize on marine resources, substantial risks can arise for people and the environment. The dominant discourse that frames blue growth as beneficial for the economy, developing nations, and coastal communities risks downplaying the uneven distribution of benefits and potential harms. Civil society organizations and academics alike have been sounding the alarm about the social justice implications of rapid and unchecked ocean development. Here, we review existing literature to highlight ten social injustices that might be produced by blue growth: 1) dispossession, displacement and ocean grabbing; 2) environmental justice concerns from pollution and waste; 3) environmental degradation and reduction of ecosystem services; 4) livelihood impacts for small-scale fishers; 5) lost access to marine resources needed for food security and well-being; 6) inequitable distribution of economic benefits; 7) social and cultural impacts; 8) marginalization of women; 9) human and Indigenous rights abuses; and, 10) exclusion from governance. Through this critical review, we aim to stimulate a rigorous dialogue on future pathways to achieve a more just and inclusive ocean economy. We contend that a commitment to ‘blue justice’ must be central to the blue growth agenda, which requires greater attention to addressing the 10 risks that we have highlighted, and propose practical actions to incorporate recognitional, procedural, and distributional justice into the future ocean economy. However, achieving a truly just ocean economy may require a complete transformation of the blue growth paradigm.
This introductory article to the special issue on the Institutional Resource Regime (IRR) framework presents an overview of the latest developments of the framework. The IRR framework has been established as an important supplement to existing (neo)institutional approaches focusing on the management of natural resources. One of the major contributions of the IRR framework is its ability to appraise the institutional complexity of heterogeneous resource use situations at the nexus of public regulatory actions and private responses, to link the resulting institutional arrangements with claimants’ access to the resource, and to propose causal mechanisms explaining the relationship between institutions and sustainability.
This paper explores how University as social entity has great potential to confront epistemic injustices by expanding epistemic capabilities. To do this, we primarily follow the contributions of scholars such as Miranda Fricker and José Medina. The epistemic capabilities and epistemic injustice nexus will be explored via two empirical cases: the first one is an experience developed in Lagos (Nigeria) using participatory video; the second is a service learning pedagogical strategy for final year undergraduate students conducted at Universidad de Ibagué (in Colombia). The Lagos experience shows how participatory action-research methodologies could promote epistemic capabilities and functioning, making it possible for the participants to generate interpretive materials to speak of their own realities. However, this experience is too limited to address testimonial and hermeneutical injustice. The Colombian experience is a remarkable experience that is building epistemic capabilities among students and other local participants. However, there is a hermeneutical and structural injustice that tends to give more value to disciplinary and codified knowledge at the expense of experiential and tacit knowledge.
The importance of tenure security for development and wellbeing is often reduced to questions about how titles can guarantee rights, overlooking the contested and layered nature of property rights themselves. We use the case of Lagos to analyse property rights as ‘analogue’ rather than ‘digital’ in nature – things that only exist by degree, where a dynamic urban situation renders the distinction between a right and a claim much less clear than conventional approaches suggest. We argue that property taxation pays important and unanticipated roles in efforts to realise property rights. To fully understand attempts to construct rights it is necessary to analyse the range of payments, documents, social relations and other strategic moves that people make to thicken property claims in contexts of ‘radical insecurity’.
This article applies an (Urban) Political Ecology lens to an urban fishing community in India to understand how people are affected by coastal transformations involving intertwined socio-economic and biophysical processes. Despite urbanization proceeding swiftly across most of the world, the literature on Small-Scale Fisheries has only partially included urbanization processes in its analysis. This is unfortunate, we argue, since urban fisheries can enrich the field by providing insights into complex settings of emerging economic opportunity colliding with traditional livelihoods and community belonging. In such settings rapid biophysical shifts, including those of built nature, become intimately entangled with social transformations under intensifying, politically contested, economic activities. To capture these dynamics, we construct a framework consisting of three theoretical concepts from Political Ecology and Urban Political Ecology; the assemblage of the social and the natural, contested urban landscapes, and identity politics. We conclude that theoretical insights from (Urban) Political Ecology can help Small-Scale Fisheries research understand the inter-relatedness of human and biophysical environments in co-constituting contested coastal transformations. This is since fishing lives and livelihoods do not only depend on the ability to access and control marine resources, but also on the possibilities to stake claims over dynamic coastal spaces, under the influence of wider political and economic transitions like those generated by urbanisation.
The success of Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) depends on the effective participation of small-scale fishers (SSFs), and the extent to which marine governance in general can address the problems they face. As Poland’s MSP in areas that are key to small-scale fisheries are yet to begin,this paper explores tensions in the country’s looming coastal MSP processes through clarifying both the risks faced by SSFs and their perspectives on MSP. Using semi-structured interviews with SSFs and analytical literature reviews on small-scale fisheries, it is found that Poland’s MSP is cast against a contentious history of marine resource management that shapes negative perceptions of and attitudes towards both the European Union-mediated MSP and marine scientists. Notably, SSFs believe that (1) authorities often undervalue and underutilize their experiential knowledge, (2) MSP is intended primarily to facilitate the siting of offshore wind farms and, (3) scientific knowledge is either not effectively communicated or is at the service of investors. A discussion follows that proposes measures through which planners can ensure procedural fairness. The paper concludes by offering TURF-Reserves as a novel and integrated co-management system within MSP which has potentials for empowering SSFs and revitalizing Poland’s small-scale fisheries, while ensuring effective marine protection.
Coastal tourism has been supported by the growth of middle-class tourist markets, promoted by governments who view it as an important avenue for economic growth and backed by environmental organisations who regard it as an alternative, more environmentally sustainable livelihood than capture fisheries. How policymakers and households in coastal areas negotiate the challenges and opportunities associated with growing tourism and declining capture fisheries is increasingly important. Drawing on extended ethnographic fieldwork from the Philippines between 2006 and 2018, this paper examines the transition from fishing to tourism and the consequences for one coastal community. I focus on land tenure as a key variable that shapes the effects and opportunities associated with livelihood transitions from fishing to tourism. While tourism has not been inherently positive or negative, the ability of local households to negotiate the boom and obtain the full benefits out of it is questionable. Many fishers have switched their primary livelihood activity to tourism, including the construction of tourist boats, working as tour guides or providing accommodation. However, the growth of tourism has prompted several attempts to evict the community, including from local elites who aimed to develop resorts on the coast and a recent push by the national administration to ‘clean up’ tourist sites around the country. I argue that land tenure in coastal communities should be more of a focus for researchers working in small-scale fisheries, as well as for researchers working on land rights.
This article examines livelihood strategies of fishers and youth in an urban fishing community in India. Situated next to the busiest fishing harbour in Karnataka, I show how proximity to the city provides fishers and youth broader occupational choices to diversify their livelihoods by intensifying or taking on several fisheries-based activities, moving into the service sector, or getting urban jobs. Urban conditions have largely influenced how fishers and youth decide their livelihood strategy. The article shows how the fishers and youth have employed livelihood diversification via both accumulation and risk management strategies. Due to the lack of analysis drawing on urban fisheries case studies, the narratives of small-scale fisheries have largely been based on rural contexts, which often portrait small-scale fishers as either inefficient or vulnerable. This study, however, allows us to open up existing small-scale fisheries narratives to view fishers as active agents. Therefore, this study calls for more systematic emphasis on studying urban implications in small-scale fishing communities with important repercussions for urban fishers and their livelihood strategies.
Slum formation and settlement globally are an indication of either a housing deficit or unaffordable cost of formal housing. However, in emerging nations, while the urban poor resolves to slum formation and settlement the government more often takes drastic measure that renders such population into extreme vulnerabilities. The informal settler who often engage in informal economic activities is major drivers of informal economies. In this study, we investigate the impact of forced evictions from a socio–economic perspective by comparing former income earning households of a demolished slum to households in three existing slum communities. As well as investigating the dominant factors prompting slum formations and settlements in two of the three communities which are emerging communities. Primarily, our focus was to map household income and ascertain fatalities post-eviction. Secondarily, we intend to profile the households in emerging communities to ascertain factors prompting slum formation and settlements in Lagos, Nigeria. We conclude that evictions are both a cause and consequence of poverty which is in itself a contributing factor to slum proliferation. We outline a few interventions in cases of unavoidable demolition and suggest the need to domesticate International Treaties in the protection of informal dwellers among other things.
The SSI Review: Standards and the Blue Economy takes a deep dive into the market and performance trends of the 9 most prevalent seafood certification schemes operating in the wild catch and aquaculture sectors. The Review provides a reference point for buyers, producers, policy makers and consumers in deciding how best to apply voluntary standards in their own decision-making processes.
Introduction
Human activities exert great pressures on the environment which in turn cause environmental stresses of various intensities depending on the factors involved and the sensitivity of the receiving environment.
Objective
This study examines the effects of anthropogenic activities along the sub-urban lagoon fragile coastal ecosystem using DPSIR framework.
Results
The results show that the study area has undergone a tremendous change between 1964 and 2015 with the built up area increasing to about 1,080 ha (17.87%) in 2015 from 224 ha (1.32%) in 1964 at an average growth rate of 16.78ha per annum. The nature of the degradation includes an increasing fragility of the ecosystem through the emergence and expansion of wetlands, flooding and erosion as well as a reduction in the benefits from the ecosystem services. Population growth, between 2006 and 2015 for Ikorodu LGA, estimated at 8.84% per annum serves as the most important driving force in reducing the quality of the environment. This is in addition to Pressures emanating from anthropogenic activities. The state of the environment shows continuous resource exploitation (fishing and sand mining) with the impacts of the pressures coming from water pollution, bank erosion, biodiversity loss and flooding. Although there has been a strong policy formulation response from the government, weak implementation is a major challenge.
Recommendation
The study recommends public awareness campaigns and the implementation of existing policies to ensure a sustainable sub-urban lagoon coastal environment..
One of the defining characteristics of inland fisheries is that they are closely impacted by other essential human activities that rely on the same fresh or brackish water ecosystems, such as hydroelectricity generation and irrigated agriculture. Starting with the premise that an understanding of fisheries' interactions with these external sectors is in itself critical for achieving sustainability of the fisheries, this paper explores the topic of intersectoral governance and outlines an approach to analyzing the intricate and often challenging sector relationships. By drawing on examples of inland fisheries from around the world, the paper proposes four broad discursive mechanisms that can structure the study of the intersectoral dynamics, i.e., system characterization, valuation, power relations, and vertical policy interaction. A synthesis model then demonstrates their interwoven nature, revealing the way each mechanism influences one another as together they shape overall outcomes. It is apparent that analyses often need to be combined to advance more rigorous (and transdisciplinary) science and also inform appropriate courses for the governance of inland fisheries. Given the typically marginal position of fisheries in inland water-use discussions, we call for a more systematic understanding of intersectoral interactions to enhance the sector's resilience within the wider society and subsequently contribute to integrated governance of waterbodies.
Similar to many other cities in sub-Saharan African countries, the struggle between urban development policies and the livelihoods of the urban poor is one of the urban development challenges facing Lagos. This paper examines the realities of the Lagos urban development policies and intiatives on the livelihoods of the urban poor. The state government embarked on series of what it calls sustainable urban transformation policies towards making Lagos ‘an African model megacity’ and a global economic and financial hub that is safe, secure, functional and productive, with a view to achieving poverty alleviation and sustainable development. This paper, through the lens of theoretical and analytical underpinnings of Sustainable Livelihoods Framework, however, argues that the actions of the state government contradict the whole essence of sustainable urban development and poverty alleviation, but reflect an agenda deliberately targeted to further impoverish the poor. While the Sustainable Livelihood was used as the theoretical and analytical framework, this paper essentially focuses on the Policies, Institutions and Processes component of the framework. This provides a unique entry point for understanding the implications of the Lagos urban development aspirations on the livelihoods of the urban poor. The research uses mixed methods research design with a broad range of data-collection methods, including household surveys, interviews, direct observation and photography, documentary review and policy document analysis. The study reveals that there is a disconnection between urban development policies and realities of the poor. The implementation of urban development projects and policies works against the urban poor and resulted in more hardship, through reduction in livelihood opportunities or complete loss of livelihoods. This study, therefore, suggests that one important element in reducing poverty in Lagos’ informal settlements is a policy framework that guarantees inclusive urban development, provision of livelihoods opportunities and accumulation of assets for the urban poor.
This Special Issue is intended to help readers gain a better understanding of the various definitions of blue growth, as well as to give a heightened awareness of the constraints of, and possibilities within, the important concept. Increased communication among those working together on these topics is of utmost importance, especially considering the diversity of the backgrounds of those who have a role to play in blue growth and sustainable development. Scientists, policy makers, business people, and the larger society need to become more precise and transparent in their language and meanings in order to effectively work together, and hopefully one day succeed in our joint goal to secure blue growth.
The study examined perceived effects of sand dredging activities on livelihood diversification of artisanal fisher folks in Lagos State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select respondents for the study. Purposively, Eti-Osa, Ibeju-Lekki, Epe and Ikorodu local Government Areas (LGAs) were selected for intensive dredging activities. Registered artisanal fishermen in these LGAs were 310, 350, 380 and 320, respectively. Twenty percent of the population in each LGAs were selected using simple random sampling technique to arrive at 272 respondents interviewed for the study. An interview schedule guide was used to elicit information on respondents’ socio-economic characteristics, knowledge, livelihood diversification and perception of the sand dredging effect on fishing activities. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson Product Moment Correlation and independent sample t-test. The mean age of fisher folks was 37 ± 8 years, 92.1 % of them were males, 81.4 % were married and had households’ size ranging from 1 to 16 persons. Over 50 % of the respondents had no formal education. Monthly income of fisher folks in the study area ranged from ₦5, 000 to ₦60, 000 with a mean income of ₦22, 892 ± 13,564 and majority (92.9 %)were members of a social group. Respondents diversified most into off-farm activities such as commercial bike riding, security and technician services. Slightly above half (55.7 %) perceived sand dredging as having a negative effect on fishing activities. Results on inferential statistic revealed that a significant relationship existed between knowledge of sand dredging effect on fishing activities (r = 0.35), monthly income (r = −0.181) and social group (χ
Increasing demand for sand for construction purposes has made river/sea sand dredging a major threat to
aquatic habitat and fishing. The study compared the cost and returns of artisanal fishermen in river sand dredging and non-dredging in selected fishing communities in Lagos state. The study showed that there were no significant differences in the average ages and experience in fishing of fishermen in sand dredging and non-dredging areas. However, there were significant differences in the average turbidity of river water and quantity of fish caught per labour hour by fishermen in dredging and non-dredging areas. The low productivity in sand dredging area is attributed to the negative effect sand dredging. Fishermen in non-sand dredging areas earned higher gross profit per day. The need for government to control the activities of the sand dredgers in fishing communities is recommended for the sustainability of the environment and fishing in the study area.
Nigeria’s urban population has increased rapidly over the past 50 years and will continue to grow relatively fast in the coming decades, although how fast is a matter of some dispute. Nigeria’s urban population will nonetheless likely double within the next 30 years, possibly much sooner. The growth of Nigeria’s urban population in both absolute and relative terms has been accompanied by the expansion of existing built-up areas and the emergence of new and identifiably ‘urban’ settlements.
This report analyses urbanisation and urban expansion in Nigeria, portraying the dynamics and drivers of urban population growth and the spatial expansion process.
The report serves as a detailed ‘baseline’ report for the urban change processes theme of the Urbanisation Research Nigeria (URN) programme – and as a foundation for the later, targeted and more detailed research.
Aquatic agricultural systems in developing countries face increasing competition from multiple stakeholders over rights to access and use natural resources, land, water, wetlands, and fisheries, essential to rural livelihoods. A key implication is the need to strengthen governance to enable equitable decision making amidst competition that spans sectors and scales, building capacities for resilience, and for transformations in institutions that perpetuate poverty. In this paper we provide a simple framework to analyze the governance context for aquatic agricultural system development focused on three dimensions: stakeholder representation, distribution of power, and mechanisms of accountability. Case studies from Cambodia, Bangladesh, Malawi/Mozambique, and Solomon Islands illustrate the application of these concepts to fisheries and aquaculture livelihoods in the broader context of intersectoral and cross-scale governance interactions. Comparing these cases, we demonstrate how assessing governance dimensions yields practical insights into opportunities for transforming the institutions that constrain resilience in local livelihoods.
Using a new framework combining vulnerability and exclusion as two central dimensions of poverty, this article revisits some of the long-standing beliefs about poverty in small-scale fisheries. We argue that the issue of poverty in fish-dependent communities cannot be reduced to a simple correlation between income poverty and fishery dependence. A more thorough analysis is required that must account for the diversity of fishing-related livelihoods and the complexity of causes of poverty, both inside and outside the sector. The article highlights how poverty in fishing communities often relates to a wide range of socio-institutional factors other than income, including landownership, debt, access to health, education and financial capital, and marginalisation from political decision making. The empirical examples used in this article refer to inland capture fisheries from the Volta and Mekong basins but, arguably, the analysis applies to other fisheries (inland and coastal) in developing countries.
Relying on experience from West Africa and the Mekong Basin, we contend that small-scale inland fisheries are a critical element in the livelihoods of many farming households who live near water bodies in developing countries. Empirical evidence suggests that the relation between poverty and small-scale fisheries cannot be reduced to a simple correlation with income. A more thorough analysis is required. Using vulnerability and exclusions as two dimensions of poverty, we show that poverty in fishing communities includes a wide range of variables: income but also land ownership, debt, access to health, education and financial capital, and political and geographical marginalization.
This study used a case study methodology to examine the issue of land tenure in the informal settlements of Lagos, Africa's largest city. This research design was used in order to shed light on the unique demographic characteristics of different slum locations, and be-cause it helps to compare the findings of this research with earlier studies conducted by the United Nations Development Programme with a view to gaining a greater insight into the characteristics of squatters and their tenure status. Two principal data types – spatial and attributes – were considered for the purposes of this study, and were drawn from primary and secondary sources. An extensive reconnaissance survey of 41 out of the 42 blighted areas identified by UNDP was carried out, and was complemented by the aerial photo-graphs, topo-planning maps and photo mosaic of the study area to develop a comprehensive trend analysis of the spatial pattern of development over time. Based on the reconnaissance survey of 41 identified areas, ten areas with a preponderance of squatters were identified using the following indicators of urban blight: tenancy, availability of facilities, and envi-ronmental problems. 407 questionnaires were administered in the centrally located areas and 176 in a peri-urban area at the edge of Lagos Lagoon for a total of 583 question-naires administered in all the selected communities. The research shows that: approximately This Chapter is from the volume: de two-thirds of the city population currently live in slums; most of the developable land in the selected areas have undergone significant development and urbanization, and the residual pockets of mash and poorly drained plots are rapidly being filled and developed; the existing land registration process, which involves payment of several fees, documentation, and the engagement of professionals, is clumsy, time-consuming, and expensive; tenure status in the study area had a major impact on poverty and the overall environmental quality as a threat of forced eviction results in a negative attitude among residents towards improving their envi-ronment. Insecurity of tenure deters investment since residents do not have access to mortgage facilities from banks because of lack of collateral. The interplay of all these factors has maintained these groups in a vicious circle of poverty.
1 ABSTRACT Lagos represents one of the cities with the fastest growing urban agglomerations in the world. Rapid urbanisation coupled with inadequate public resource has given rise to peculiar land development system that is, informal land use. It has been observed that formal land management system has continuously failed in providing land for housing and other uses, registering titles and land transfers, regulating access to and use of land as well as providing basic infrastructure services. The shortage of the formal system has, however, been largely compensated by the increasing importance of an informal system in land development. This paper addresses the main issues and challenges of informal land use in Lagos State and how it can be integrated into urban development so as to achieve a sustainable, healthy and livable urban settlement. Major issues and challenges confronting informal land use as identified by the paper include uncontrolled and conflicting land use, Unplanned growth, illegal squatting, overcrowding, inadequate or lack of basic services and infrastructure, continuous rise in incidence of informal land use, insecurity of tenure, poverty and worsening environmental conditions, marginality, exclusion and vulnerability among others. Therefore, it is imperative to confront the incidence of informal land use through the use of adequate and sustainable means of land use management system, informal land regularization that guarantees security of tenure, urban growth and housing strategy to address shortage of affordable and adequate serviced housing, massive provision of basic services and infrastructure and improved urban land administration. 2 INTRODUCTION In sub-Saharan Africa, land defines the social, economic and political relations in the society. Especially in the urban areas, it provides the basis upon which planners predicate their strategies of development (Wanjala, 2002). However, It has been observed that in many third world cities, urban land can either be obtained formally or informally, and that the informal sector provides much more land to land seekers (including the majority of the poor) than the formal sector. Nevertheless, the mechanisms of the informal land sector are usually ignored and are hardly understood and documented. (Mabogunje, 1990). The informal sector encompasses a wide range of areas of informality — environmental, spatial, economic, and social, covering business activities, employment, markets, settlements, and neighborhoods. Most urban households in the developing world live in informal settlements due to their often exclusion from formal systems of land management. Up to 85 percent of new housing is produced informally, a trend that is especially pronounced in sub-Saharan Africa and particularly in Nigeria (Nkurunziza, 2007).
1 ABSTRACT Waterfront properties are major revenue earners in many parts of the world. Apart from high property values they command for the property owners, they provide revenue for the government and serve as a source of enjoyment, recreation and tourism when open to the public. Along the Lagos lagoon, this is currently not the case as the waterfront has degenerated into a slum with non-distinctive housing, mainly shanties at various points, wood preservation, markets and commercial fishing activities. Growing statistics show that waterfronts have huge potentials of financial gains. In the study area this potential lies hugely unexploited and grossly under-utilized thereby wasting the area's natural recreational resources. This research examines the situation along the Lagos lagoon; identify problems causing lack of development of the waterfront for recreation and tourism, and proffer solutions that will enable policy makers in government and the private sector to improve the area. The study identified the problems, causes and recommends urban renewal and landscape architectural interventions to engineer the desired change necessary to transform the area thus making it more amenable to higher property values, maximize the use of the land and encourage recreation / tourism to the existing waterfront. Among the problems identified, as they affect the waterfront, include: very high population density, lack of planning and infrastructure, especially functional water transport, properly designed relaxation and passive leisure areas, lack of security and non availability of on-site recreational/entertainment facilities. The outcome of the research will be of benefit to property owners in the area, architects, landscape architects, resort managers, tourists, visitors, industry practitioners, policy makers and other stakeholders in determining appropriate facilities in order to create very functionally attractive Lagos lagoon waterfronts for recreation and tourism.
The concept of Blue Economy (BE) is recognized as central for sustainable development
that incorporates socio-economic benefits and ecological conservation. However, in
Africa, much of the emphasis on BE is placed on economic gains; as a result,
traditional livelihoods and small-scale local operations are outcompeted by international
corporations and government initiatives, with little or no regard for social inclusion and
environmental sustainability. We argue that successful BE initiatives in Africa accentuate
the involvement of local communities and promote sustenance of the natural ecosystem.
We define success in terms of the sustainability balance among ecological, social and
economic aspects. Drawing on extensive expert experiences, observational data and
literature review of case studies across the African continent, we highlight two critical
findings. First, large scale BE initiatives prioritize economic gains at the expense of
environmental degradation and the exclusion of local communities. Second, using the
full spectrum sustainability (FSS) evaluation, we show that successful BE interventions
considered ecological, economic, socio-cultural and institutional objectives. Drawing
on these case studies, we propose the adoption of a collaborative framework which
amalgamates the top-down and bottom-up approaches to BE management. Achieving
the goal of successful blue growth in Africa is now even more challenged by the
implications of COVID-19 on the BE sectors. Reimagining and rebuilding a resilient
BE in Africa post-coronavirus will require a strong political commitment to promoting
a balance between economic, social and environmental benefits in line with the African
Union’s Agenda 2063 and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
A systematic and theoretically informed analysis of how extractive industries affect health outcomes and health inequities is overdue. Informed by the work of Saskia Sassen on "logics of extraction," we adopt an expansive definition of extractive industries to include (for example) large-scale foreign acquisitions of agricultural land for export production. To ground our analysis in concrete place-based evidence, we begin with a brief review of four case examples of major extractive activities. We then analyze the political economy of extractivism, focusing on the societal structures, processes, and relationships of power that drive and enable extraction. Next, we examine how this global order shapes and interacts with politics, institutions, and policies at the state/national level contextualizing extractive activity. Having provided necessary context, we posit a set of pathways that link the global political economy and national politics and institutional practices surrounding extraction to health outcomes and their distribution. These pathways involve both direct health effects, such as toxic work and environmental exposures and assassination of activists, and indirect effects, including sustained impoverishment, water insecurity, and stress-related ailments. We conclude with some reflections on the need for future research on the health and health equity implications of the global extractive order. URL: https://authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S1353829217311966
Regime shifts from one ecological state to another are often portrayed as sudden, dramatic, and difficult to reverse given the extent of substantial reorganizations in system structure, functions and feedbacks. However, most assessments of regime shifts in terrestrial and aquatic systems have emphasized their physical and/or biological dimensions. Our objective is to illustrate how equivalent concern with ecological and social processes can enhance our ability to understand and navigate 'social-ecological’ regime shifts. We draw on two coastal lagoon systems experiencing rapid change to provide an empirical foundation for an initial analytical framework. Key issues we address include: 1) distinguishing underlying versus proximate drivers of rapid change (ecological and social); 2) considering appropriate scales of intervention; 3) considering the appropriate unit(s) for understanding regime shifts; 4) reflecting on social equity and the distribution of impacts (and benefits) of regime shifts; 5) assessing the influence of social power in the framing of and response to regime shifts; and 6) clarifying the role of management and governance in the context of rapid social-ecological change. Effective responses to social-ecological regime shifts will require a transition towards interdisciplinary research, inclusion of integrative and scale-specific suite of attributes for assessment, and interventions in management and governance approaches that are more multi-level, collaborative and adaptive.
The essence of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries (SSF Guidelines) juxtaposed with the Guidelines’ voluntary nature has resulted in mixed outcomes. On the one hand, the Guidelines galvanise a willing state into action but on the other they are like a rusty tool unable to adequately ensure the principles and objectives are followed. This chapter presents a situation report of a traditional fishery that has the recipe for a successful management of a common pool resource. It explores the issues that require attention within the fishery so that the provisions of the SSF Guidelines are complied with. It is worthwhile to know the trajectory in which small-scale fisheries in Nigeria have moved pre- and post - SSF Guidelines, especially with regard to tenure rights. The chapter also examines the social development goals of the state with regard to provisioning of services that reflect the needs of fisheries- dependent communities and its attempts to deepen economic and social developments. Policy inconsistency is a common challenge which slows down progress and ultimately impacts negatively on the development of management plans, governance and the socio-economic interests of small-scale fishers. Inadequate communication coupled with limited participation of important stakeholders, especially small-scale fishers, in formal governance exacerbates slow progress. Areas for future research and data generation for fisheries management are spelled out. Information, research, and communication should also unpackage the indigenous knowledge of fishers. Such knowledge will help planning.
This paper reviews research traditions of vulnerability to environmental change and the challenges for present vulnerability research in integrating with the domains of resilience and adaptation. Vulnerability is the state of susceptibility to harm from exposure to stresses associated with environmental and social change and from the absence of capacity to adapt. Antecedent traditions include theories of vulnerability as entitlement failure and theories of hazard. Each of these areas has contributed to present formulations of vulnerability to environmental change as a characteristic of social-ecological systems linked to resilience. Research on vulnerability to the impacts of climate change spans all the antecedent and successor traditions. The challenges for vulnerability research are to develop robust and credible measures, to incorporate diverse methods that include perceptions of risk and vulnerability, and to incorporate governance research on the mechanisms that mediate vulnerability and promote adaptive action and resilience. These challenges are common to the domains of vulnerability, adaptation and resilience and form common ground for consilience and integration.
This chapter presents the conceptual foundations of governability and interactive governance upon which it is based. Interactive governance is a theoretical perspective that emphasizes the governing roles of state, market and civil society. Interactions between these realms are argued to be an important factor in the success or failure of whatever governance takes place. Governability refers to the quality of governance in a societal field, such as fisheries. Diversity, complexity, dynamics and scale are argued to be major variables influencing the governability of societal systems and their three components: a system-to-be-governed, a governing system and a system of governing interactions mediating between the two.
Concerns, problems and issues in fisheries and aquaculture are, in many instances, undermined by the lack of a thorough examination of their nature and of the characteristics of the associated systems. Their persistence creates governability challenges, which have restricted effective policy interventions. In order to improve governability, we submit that there is a need to first recognize the complexity of the problems, and then conceptualize them in a way that points towards solutions. In so doing, it may reveal not only limits to governance but also the opportunities and possibilities that exist to enhance governability, i.e., the overall quality for governance.
As the slave trade entered its last, illegal phase in the 19th century, the town of Lagos on West Africa's Bight of Benin became one of the most important port cities north of the equator. Slavery and the Birth of an African City explores the reasons for Lagos's sudden rise to power. By linking the histories of international slave markets to those of the regional suppliers and slave traders, Kristin Mann shows how the African slave trade forever altered the destiny of the tiny kingdom of Lagos. This magisterial work uncovers the relationship between African slavery and the growth of one of Africa's most vibrant cities.
This chapter investigates the variations in governability that occur in fisheries systems. It builds upon the notion that diversity, complexity, dynamics, and scale affect the performance of societal systems profoundly, and that these effects emerge at the level of their three components. Variations in the governability of systems-to-be-governed are examined through a chain approach. Theories of legal pluralism, institutional nestedness and adaptability are subsequently applied to assess the governability of governing systems. Finally, governing interactions are considered through the lens of three ideal-typical modes – self-governance, hierarchical governance and co-governance. The many variations of governability are illustrated with cases from the capture fisheries of South India. The central message is that connections between the components of a fisheries system matter and that a better match may result in higher levels of governability.
The purpose of this chapter is twofold. First of all, it presents the major scholarly discussions with regard to the features and systems in interactive governance theory, highlighting the concept of governability. Secondly, it aims to introduce examples from other scholarly work on interactive governance to illustrate where progress has been made and further reinforcement is needed. The author concludes that governability has not only proven to be a rich concept and a source for further theoretical work, but that it can also be fruitfully applied to societal sectors or systems such as fisheries.
The systematic literature of fishes and fisheries in Lagos Lagoon is scattered, hence there is need for a comprehensive documentation of the diverse fish species that characterize the ecosystem. Fisheries research by earlier scientists reveals diverse species of fishes in the Lagoon. In recent years, a decline in a hitherto viable commercial artisanal fishery, points to environmental degradation and possible changes in water quality with biological consequences for the biota in this environment. The Lagos Lagoon is made of about one hundred and fifteen (115) species of fin fishes in seventy-nine (79) genera, forty-nine (49) families, seventeen (17) orders, two (2) classes and (1) super-class (Gnathostomata). In addition, there are four (4) species of decapod crustaceans (shell fishes) in three (3) families. This paper also shows changes in species composition as reported by the historic documentation in literature.
The study of the Coastal Yorubaland as a regional group is of recent phenomenon. The traditional history of the various subgroups such as the Awori, Ilaje and Ijebu waterside is replete in theories and concepts of migration. The study of these theories and concepts in the settlement studies of the groups will enhance the knowledge of the Yoruba of the coastal environment. This presentation focuses on the analysis of the theories and concepts of migration of the Yoruba of the Coastal Nigeria which has not been given adequate attention. The study relies on diligent collection and interpretation of oral, ethnographic, archival and secondary source materials. The study observed that the pull and push factor in the settlement of the various coastal Yoruba found expression in economic, political, social, religious and geographical factors. The pattern of migration was from less favourable environment to more favourable one leading to fission and fusion of groups. The religious factor, especially that of the Ifa oracle played a dominant role in the settlement of many groups while the Ife connection remains a binding force.
The Lagos coast has been suffering high rates of erosion since the construction of three harbour moles, i.e. the West Mole, East Mole and the Training Mole, at the tidal inlet connecting the Lagos Lagoon to the South Atlantic Ocean. To provide for a permanent erosion mitigation measure and to create residential and commercial area for circa 400,000 people, the Eko Atlantic City project has been initiated in 2008. In front of the eroded coast, approximately 9 km² of land will be reclaimed and protected by a revetment. In this study the long-term and large-scale morphological behavior of the Lagos coast is investigated and subsequently the long-term morphological impact of the project is assessed. First, a conceptual model is created, in which the historical development of the coast is discussed. The long-term morphological behavior of the coast downstream of the inlet is determined by two main factors: sediment accumulation at the West Mole and sediment import into the tidal inlet and the lagoon, induced by disturbance of the morphological equilibrium by sea level rise and dredging activities. Using the numerical simulation model Unibest, the long-term impact of Eko Atlantic City is assessed. It is concluded that the construction of Eko Atlantic City will not change the total erosion volumes downstream of the inlet. However, as the revetment of the project retains the coast, the erosion will be shifted towards downstream. Downdrift of the project, the erosion rates are locally relatively high. The shape of the sea defence has been designed to minimize the local erosion effect. A monitoring and mitigation strategy has been recommended to monitor this effect and instruct coastal protection management actions to be implemented if required.
The rise of Lagos, which became the principal port of the ‘Slave Coast’ at the end of the eighteenth century, can only be understood by reference to the interaction between the European Atlantic trade and the indigenous canoe-borne trade along the coastal lagoons. European traders in the sixteenth century used the Lagos channel and the lagoon to approach the Ijebu kingdom, where slaves and cloth were purchased, but this trade lapsed in the seventeenth century. The Lagos settlement originated as a fishing hamlet, but was occupied as a military base by Benin around the end of the sixteenth century. Benin expansion to the west may have been designed to prevent European trade with Ijebu, in the interests of a Benin monopoly. Lagos remained formally subject to Benin until the nineteenth century, but the decline of Benin power in the eighteenth century left it effectively independent. European sources of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries attest trade in cloth and slaves passing along the lagoons through Lagos to Allada and Whydah in the west. Although this pattern of trade has been assumed to date back to pre-European times, it was more probably a consequence of the European presence, and more specifically of the westward drift of European interest along the coast from Benin after the sixteenth century. European traders began to show an active interest in the lagoon trade to the east of Allada in the early eighteenth century, and again began to explore the possibility of using the Lagos channel to bapproach the inland lagoons. Lagos developed as an Atlantic port from the 1760s, exporting slaves and Ijebu cloth, but its importance was limited by its remoteness from any major source of slaves. Its emergence as a major port in the late eighteenth century was due to the disruption of slave shipments from ports further west by military pressure from Dahomey, which led to the diversion of slave supplies eastward along the lagoons for shipment from Lagos.
The research examines how urban agriculture as an individual household micro level strategy can directly influence the financial empowerment of urban poor within the Lagos metropolis, positively. Using secondary data collected from government agencies (satellite image, hydrology map, statistical data etc) and primary data collected from field observation and reconnaissance survey; the paper takes inventory of potential land and water resources that can contribute to urban agriculture within Lagos metropolis The research finds out that Lagos metropolis requires 18 times its present size (3,577 km 2) to be able to feed her people on sustainable basis. It identifies 4,293 and 28,890 ha of potential land and water resources under the jurisdiction of Federal, State and private ownership, respectively. The paper recommends urban agriculture land use policies that will avoid clash between the interests of farmers and long term government land use goals. It concludes that such well articulated goals need to bear in mind the environmental impact of urban agriculture on the cityscape as well as its management on a sustainable basis such as the choice of crops and ideal number of farmers needed for land and water resources in the State.
Inspired by Rittel and Webber [Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sciences 1973;4:155–69], it is argued that fisheries and coastal governance is confronted with problems that are inherently “wicked.” Problems are wicked (as opposed to “tame”) when they are difficult to define and delineate from other and bigger problems and when they are not solved once and for all but tend to reappear. Wicked problems have no technical solution, it is not clear when they are solved, and they have no right or wrong solution that can be determined scientifically. Instead, for wicked problems governance must rely on the collective judgment of stakeholders involved in a process that is experiential, interactive and deliberative. In this paper, the wicked problem is identified as a governability issue, recognizing that there are limitations to how rational and effective fisheries and coastal governance can possibly be. The paper offers a framework which could help us locate the wicked problems within the fisheries and coastal governance system, as well as examine their governability.
Nigeria: NIWA, LASG resume battle over dredging activities in waterways
- E Abiodun
Fishing community laments disorder from Lagos Lagoon reclamation
- C Agu
- G Alegba
Fisheries and aquaculture in the context of blue economy. Feeding Africa. Background paper
- L Ababouch
Shifting sands: Lagos communities count the cost of dredging
- B Adebayo
A city in transition: vision, reform, and growth in Lagos
- M O Filani
Sand dredging in Nigeria’s waterways between the economic boom and environmental doom
- B Masade-Olowola