Review of river fisheries valuation in central and south America

Andy Thorpe, E. Bennett

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter (peer-reviewed)peer-review

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    Abstract

    The report (which contains this chapter) is a compilation of five regional reviews that document the global status of tropical rivers and inland fisheries in three continents: Latin America, Africa and Asia. It explores the role of ‘valuation’ methods and their contribution to policy-making and river fishery management. From the compilation, the best estimate of the global value of inland fisheries for those three continents is US$ 5.58 billion (gross market value), which is equivalent to 19 percent of the current value of annual fish exports from developing countries (US$ 29 billion) for 2004. The compilation shows that there is a general shortage of information on inland fisheries, especially derived from conventional economic valuation methods, though information from economic impact assessment methods and socio-economic and livelihood analysis methods is more widely available. The status of knowledge about the impact of changes in river management on the value of tropical river fisheries is weak and patchy. Although the impacts of large dams on the hydrology, ecology and livelihood support attributes of tropical rivers are well-recognized, there have been only few valuation studies of these issues. The document highlights the need for further valuation studies of tropical river and inland fisheries in developing countries. It underlines how vital it is for policy-makers and other stakeholders to understand the importance of these natural resources in order to make appropriate decisions concerning their role in development policy and illustrates why capacity building in valuation should become a major priority for agencies concerned with fisheries management and policy-making.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationTropical river fisheries valuation
    EditorsA. Neiland, C. Bene
    Place of PublicationPenang, Malaysia
    PublisherWorldFish Centre
    Pages3-44
    Number of pages42
    Edition1836
    ISBN (Print)9789832346616
    Publication statusPublished - 2008

    Publication series

    NameWorldFish Center Studies and Reviews
    PublisherWorldFish Centre
    Number1836

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