Enhancing social resilience and addressing economic uncertainty in small-scale fishing households along the west coast of West Sumatra

¹ Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Andalas University, West Sumatra, Indonesia
² Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Andalas University, West Sumatra, Indonesia
³ Department of International Relations, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Andalas University, West Sumatra, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: luckyzamzami@soc.unand.ac.id

Abstract

This study examined the significance of small-scale fishing within the west coastal communities in Sumatra. It aimed to investigate the impact of various factors, such as the COVID-19 outbreak, overfishing, and changes in marine ecosystems, on the decline of natural resources. These factors created insecurity in the livelihoods of small-scale fishing and had severe social and economic impacts on coastal communities. To better understand the coping mechanisms used by small-scale fishing in response to external shocks, a qualitative study was conducted in Ampiang Parak Village, Sutera sub-District, South Pesisir District. Data were collected using observation, interviews, literature review, and photo documentation. The results showed that small-scale fishing and the associated households used various livelihood strategies to respond to these challenges. Furthermore, this study examined the social resilience built by fishing households to overcome economic insecurity. The result showed that the resiliencebuilding measures included income diversification, temporal and seasonal migration, women group empowerment, the development of labor division, and the exploration of non-fish resources.