Subsistence fisheries in Small Island Developing States: the case study of the goby-fry fishery in Guinea Gulf

Maria Compte-Ejarque, Diolay Rosário, Marta Albo-Puigserver, Maria Emilia Cunha, Rita B. Domingues, Hugulay A. Maia, Maria Alexandra Teodósio, Vânia Baptista 

1. Artisanal and subsistence fisheries are crucial for the livelihood and food security of local communities of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), yet they remain largely excluded from formal catch statistics and management frameworks. Using Ostrom’s Social-Ecological Systems (SES) diagnostic framework, this study characterizes the previously unreported goby-fry (“peixinho”) fishery across 14 riparian communities in São Tomé and Príncipe (Gulf of Guinea). Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and validated via synthesized member checking.
2. The fishery is strongly dominated by women (74%), with fishing tactics structured by regional geomorphology and age. Traditional traps (“tchanga”) dominate on the western coast (52%), where they are primarily used by older fishers. On the eastern coast, nylon nets (40%) and mosquito nets (17%) dominate, whereas mosquito nets are used exclusively on Príncipe Island. The shift from traditional to synthetic fishing gear affects ecological performance: nylon nets and multi-gear tactics capture significantly more accidental bycatch (21 non-target species identified) than traditional “tchanga” traps.
3. Fishers possess detailed Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) regarding lunar and seasonal recruitment cycles, aligned with the amphidromous life history of Sicydiinae gobies; however, results show that LEK alone cannot replace systematic monitoring.
4. Although 63% view the fishery as commercial, one-third retain catches for household protein, and 72% reinvest revenues directly into essential basic needs (mostly food and education). Most fishers (90%) are aware of resource decline, yet they hesitate to support top-down gear prohibitions due to subsistence dependence, preferring instead community-based rules (46%).
5. Sustainable government will require establishing co-management arrangements that integrate LEK with scientific monitoring, address gendered participation, and build multilevel institutional linkages, infrastructure currently lacking in São Tomé and Príncipe.