Women and the question of sustainable development in a Philippine fishing village

Abstract

This paper presents a case study of time use and contribution to the household income of men, women, and children in 12 households in a fishing village in Panay Island, central Philippines. The study highlights the differential impact of poverty on men and women and provides a glimpse of the intrahousehold dynamics within poor fishing households. Findings in previous studies in both industrialized and developing countries that women work longer hours than men were corroborated. Women contribute at least 22% to the household cash income and 40% of the value of unpaid labour. Their contribution to the household cash income becomes larger than that of men's when the value of livestock is computed. Women's daily participation in productive activities, such as fish vending and shucking oyster and mussel, unwittingly puts them in a position of being environmental recorders and verifiers of the state of fishery resources. Because they are burdened with the responsibility of making ends meet, they are also confronted with the challenge of realizing the dream of sending their children to university to enable them to escape poverty. This alone makes women one of the strongest stakeholders in the sustainable development of fishery resources.