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The Political Economy of Marine Fisheries Development in Indonesia
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1988
Year
Sustainable FisheriesEngineeringSustainable FisheryDevelopment EconomicsEconomic DevelopmentAgricultural EconomicsEnvironmental EconomicsFisheries DevelopmentCommercial FishingMarine EconomicsAquaculturePolitical EconomyFisheries ScienceAquatic EnergyEconomicsPublic PolicyAquatic SustainabilitySeafood IndustryFishery EnforcementSeathe SeasBusinessPhysical Reality.the SeaNatural Resource EconomicsFisheries Management
The Importance of the SeaThe seas surrounding Indonesia have shaped its history and will continue to play a major part' in determining the future course of its development.As an archipelagic nation, Indonesia's marine environment is a dominating physical reality.The sea makes up roughly two-thirds of the nation's total area.In addition to 2.7 million square kilometers of territorial waters, Indonesia's jurisdiction extends over a further 2.1 million square kilometers of ocean as its Exclusive Economic Zone.Among the many resources found in this vast expanse, none-including, I would argue, oil and gas-is more important than fisheries resources.Fish provides more than 60 percent of the animal protein intake of the average Indonesian* 1 and is the only affordable source for the majority of the population.According to the Directorate General of Fisheries (DGF), approximately 1.3 million Indonesians are directly employed as fishers in the marine sector,2 with at least an equal number employed in various supportive roles, including boat building and fish processing, distribution, and marketing.3In addition, fisheries products are becoming increasingly important as sources of export earnings.Despite the importance of the fisheries sector to national welfare, most fishers are small-scale producers who are among the poorest of the poor in Indonesian society.Foremost among the reasons for this poverty is overfishing in key fishing grounds off Java, Sumatra, and Sulawesi.4Clear evidence of resource limitations notwithstanding, however, during the past two decades the Indonesian government has made a series of conscious policy decisions to encourage development of a modern and, by Indonesian standards, capital-intensive fishing industry.This article elucidates the rationale behind these national policies and provides an assessment of the role of international development agencies in influencing and supporting them.As can be expected during any period of rapid technological and structural change, the benefits of fisheries development in Indonesia have not been equally shared.