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Introduction and methodology
1. This document presents a ‘Scoping Study of Socio-Economic Data and Indicators of IOTC
Fisheries’. The study was completed by Poseidon Aquatic Resource Management Limited, at
the request of the IOTC. The study was completed in line with the terms of reference agreed
at the IOTC’s 22nd session as specified in Resolution 18/09.
2. The study focusses on potential data and indicators specifically related the species under
IOTC’s mandate, and the economic and social contributions that could be attributed to catches
made in the Indian Ocean.
3. The study was completed between January and July 2019, and used a phased approach
with a planning phase, a data collection phase, and an analysis and reporting phase. A
methodology was proposed in an inception report and agreed between the consultants and
the IOTC Secretariat during the planning phase. A questionnaire (made available in both
English and French) was used to elicit the views of CPCs on a range of issues related to data
and indicators, and to request data. Seventeen completed questionnaires were returned to
the consultants following a series of requests and reminders to CPCs, and form the basis of
the findings, conclusions, and recommendations in this report. Secondary sources and
communication with other ongoing projects were also used to access additional data.
Key findings about the economic and social importance of IOTC fisheries to CPCs
4. The availability of accurate and comprehensive data to determine the economic and social
contribution of tuna fisheries in the Indian Ocean to CPCs, is extremely limited.
5. Principle economic benefits accrue in the form of: national contributions to gross domestic
product, balance of payments and foreign exchange; revenue to governments from licence
fees they charge their own vessels and vessels from third countries (in the case of coastal
states) and access payments; profits to business owners in catching sector, upstream
input/supply businesses, and downstream processing/marketing/export businesses; and
income to individuals working in the catching, upstream, and downstream sectors.
6. Catching sector ex-vessel values of species under the mandate of the IOTC are in the order
of US$ 4.8 billion for 2017. Contributions to GDP from upstream supply businesses, and
downstream processing/marketing, may be at least the same order of magnitude.
7. Principle social benefits accrue from: i) employment in the catching, upstream, and
downstream sector; and ii) contributions to food security. Not accounting for net trade in tuna,
in 2017 catches of tuna and tuna-like species, potentially available for food consumption, were
1.8 million tonnes.
Key findings about the collection of economic and social data by CPCs
8. The questionnaires asked CPCs to provide information about whether they collect a range
of economic and social data. Except for data on domestic landings by species, for most other
types of data (e.g. employment and profits in catching, upstream and downstream sectors; exvessel
retail and export prices; crew/labour earnings; government revenues from the sector),
there are a significant proportion/number of CPCs that do not currently collect them (or not specifically related to their tuna vessels/catches in the Indian Ocean) and the coverage of data
collection is very patchy.
9. For CPCs that don’t currently collect different types of, many do not favour expanding data
collection, primarily due to the costs and impact on workload that would be involved. The
reluctance to expand data collection is especially marked in non-coastal states, in part
because of the difficulties (and therefore associated costs) of disentangling data specifically
related to tuna fisheries in the Indian Ocean from data related to fleet activity in other oceans.
10. With respect to whether it might be appropriate for the IOTC to request economic and
social data from all CPCs to provide a complete regional data set, or whether it should be left
for CPCs to collect and use data as they choose in discussions about management decisionmaking,
there were strongly held and opposing views by different CPCs and no strong majority
for either position. In considering whether the provision or use of any relevant data should be
a ‘one-time’ exercise to inform allocation discussions, or whether regular provision of data to
IOTC on a yearly or bi-annual basis could be useful to inform other IOTC discussions, views
were mixed, but with more CPCs in favour of regular provision/use of data than not (assuming
data were to be collected and used at all).
Key findings about potential economic and social indicators
11. The consultants proposed nine possible economic indicators and seven possible social
indicators, articulating the data requirements for the indicators, units of measurement, and
what they are a measure of. It is noted that other regional organisations collect economic and
social data for use in management decision-making and to generate similar types of indicators,
and such data collection appears to be a growing trend given management needs.
12. Overall there was a high level of support for all the economic and social indicators
proposed when considering their usefulness. Some differentiation in support for specific
indicators suggests a clear priority of some over others. Average economic and social indicator
scores were higher for the usefulness of indicators, than for the feasibility of data collection
that would be required, reflecting both the reluctance of many CPCs to expand data collection
and/or the challenges of doing so in terms of costs and resources.
13. CPCs suggested a range of other indicators not proposed by the consultants as being
useful. Perhaps most notable and frequent in terms of suggestions were the usefulness of an
indicator of tuna-related contributions to GDP, state management and research-related costs,
and indicators of dependency (for example of coastal communities and/or households on tunarelated
activities, of total employment on tuna-related employment).
