about new knowledge to the process. However, the authorities managing the
planning process are likely to influence specific knowledge realms that will be used
with MSP.
The relative position of different stakeholder groups in MSP, either as holding
perceived historical rights by decision-makers or de facto allocated property rights,
also shapes future planning. Being a relatively new activity, aquaculture has often
had a weaker position than traditional activities, according to some authors
(Burbridge et al. 2001; Wever et al. 2015). On the other hand, the lack of appropriate governance systems in some developing countries, and specifically the
presence of corruption, can lead to unwanted privatization by aquaculture entrepreneurs (Cabral and Aliño 2011).
8.2.3 Direct Benefits of Aquaculture, and Their Distribution
The provision of food and nutrition security, jobs and income are the main reasons
for promoting and employing aquaculture. In addition to these rather straightforward benefits, aquaculture makes a further contribution as the consumption of
animal source food facilitates uptake of nutrients from dietary components of
vegetable origin (Leroy and Frongillo 2007). This role of addressing the hidden
hunger problem, that is the lack of certain nutrients in everyday accessible foodstuff, is particularly important in countries such as i.e. Bangladesh, Cambodia,
Ghana, Nigeria, and the Pacific Islands, where many people are impoverished and
fish is by far the most frequently consumed animal-source food (Belton et al. 2011;
Hortle 2007; Biederlack and Rivers 2009).
The documentation of the economic and employment benefits of aquaculture is
often done in either official statistics (like for Norway: http://ssb.no/en/fiskeoppdrett)
(Goulding et al. 2000), or in reports from aquaculture industry associations to
strengthen support for the industry (e.g. see Sandberg et al. 2014), or as commissions
from regional authorities who want to understand how different industries contribute
to regional development (e.g. see for Troms county in Norway Robertsen et al. 2012).
In contrast to these Western country examples, cases from Thailand and
Bangladesh suggest that, whilst the financial and employment gains generated by
this sort of activity may appear substantial on paper (incomes from fish more than
doubled, etc.), when placed in the context of the overall livelihood portfolio of
practicing households, they are generally fairly modest. Thus, whilst economic
gains in aquaculture production achieved in Thailand were superficially impressive,
the already relatively affluent households involved subsequently abandoned techniques required to sustain them, because they could not compete with alternatives
such as selling labor in a buoyant non-farm economy (Belton and Little 2011). The
retention by project participants in rural Bangladesh of similar techniques capable
of generating similar production increases may be indicative of the generally more
170
G. Krause and E. Mikkelsen
planning process are likely to influence specific knowledge realms that will be used
with MSP.
The relative position of different stakeholder groups in MSP, either as holding
perceived historical rights by decision-makers or de facto allocated property rights,
also shapes future planning. Being a relatively new activity, aquaculture has often
had a weaker position than traditional activities, according to some authors
(Burbridge et al. 2001; Wever et al. 2015). On the other hand, the lack of appropriate governance systems in some developing countries, and specifically the
presence of corruption, can lead to unwanted privatization by aquaculture entrepreneurs (Cabral and Aliño 2011).
8.2.3 Direct Benefits of Aquaculture, and Their Distribution
The provision of food and nutrition security, jobs and income are the main reasons
for promoting and employing aquaculture. In addition to these rather straightforward benefits, aquaculture makes a further contribution as the consumption of
animal source food facilitates uptake of nutrients from dietary components of
vegetable origin (Leroy and Frongillo 2007). This role of addressing the hidden
hunger problem, that is the lack of certain nutrients in everyday accessible foodstuff, is particularly important in countries such as i.e. Bangladesh, Cambodia,
Ghana, Nigeria, and the Pacific Islands, where many people are impoverished and
fish is by far the most frequently consumed animal-source food (Belton et al. 2011;
Hortle 2007; Biederlack and Rivers 2009).
The documentation of the economic and employment benefits of aquaculture is
often done in either official statistics (like for Norway: http://ssb.no/en/fiskeoppdrett)
(Goulding et al. 2000), or in reports from aquaculture industry associations to
strengthen support for the industry (e.g. see Sandberg et al. 2014), or as commissions
from regional authorities who want to understand how different industries contribute
to regional development (e.g. see for Troms county in Norway Robertsen et al. 2012).
In contrast to these Western country examples, cases from Thailand and
Bangladesh suggest that, whilst the financial and employment gains generated by
this sort of activity may appear substantial on paper (incomes from fish more than
doubled, etc.), when placed in the context of the overall livelihood portfolio of
practicing households, they are generally fairly modest. Thus, whilst economic
gains in aquaculture production achieved in Thailand were superficially impressive,
the already relatively affluent households involved subsequently abandoned techniques required to sustain them, because they could not compete with alternatives
such as selling labor in a buoyant non-farm economy (Belton and Little 2011). The
retention by project participants in rural Bangladesh of similar techniques capable
of generating similar production increases may be indicative of the generally more
170
G. Krause and E. Mikkelsen