USAID/South America Region: Gender and Fisheries Analysis

USAID)/South America Region (SAR) contracted Banyan Global to undertake a gender analysis to inform the regional fishery and marine conservation strategy for USAID/SAR’s regional environment and sustainable development (RESD) activities. This analysis provides recommendations for strategies and interventions to guide USAID/SAR in incorporating gender equality and women’s empowerment into the design of its existing and future fisheries and marine conservation activities, based on an improved understanding of gender and marine fisheries in the coastal regions of Peru and Ecuador, including the Galápagos Islands.

The research was designed to improve understanding of (1) gender roles, dynamics, and statuses (formal and informal) in fishery value chains (with a particular focus on the octopus/benthic invertebrate, tuna [Thunnus sp.], mahi-mahi [Corypahena hipparus sp.], and Humboldt squid [Dosidicus gigas sp.]); and (2) the barriers to compliance, limited benefits received, and vulnerabilities experienced by women in relation to fisheries and marine conservation regulations.