Dahlet, Lol ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1743-852X, Barboza, Roberta, van Putten, Ingrid, Akpan, Aniekan, Siriwardane-de Zoysa, Rapti and Glaser, Marion ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8910-900X (2025) Perceptions of governance and access in artisanal marine fisheries in northern Brazil. Ecology and Society, 30 (3). DOI https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-16389-300330.

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Abstract

Artisanal fisheries form the basis of the livelihoods of millions of people in the Brazilian Amazon. Few empirical studies have characterized, however, how the governance of marine small-scale artisanal fisheries (SSF) in the Amazon, under the decentralized governance system in place, is perceived by those most affected. Drawing on Ribot and Peluso’s (2003) Theory of Access eight net-map interviews were conducted with key informants (small-scale and large-scale artisanal fishers, representative of civil society organization and public authority) to investigate how the local fisheries governance system is perceived to affect SSF access to fish and fisheries in Bragança (E of Pará, northern Brazil) between November 2022 and March 2023. Interactions are predominantly seen to occur between SSF as part of daily access negotiation processes. These processes take shape through interactions relating to knowledge of the biogeophysical environment and fishing, and conflict situations when customary fishing rules are not respected. Public authorities were seen to primarily control fishers’ legal access through inspections. Civil society organizations were perceived to be ineffective in facilitating access to benefits from public policies. Public authorities and civil society organizations were seen to leave a governance gap in terms of access for fishers. Vessel owners and post-harvest actors were seen by fishers as key regulators of SSF access to capital and markets. They control credits, set ex-vessel prices, and provide material resourcing that sustain power asymmetry. This study highlights key stakeholders’ perceptions of the range of relationships through which access to fish and fisheries is negotiated and contested. Our findings suggest that coastal fisheries governance in the Brazilian Amazon needs to address a number of factors influencing SSF, and more broadly, artisanal fishers’ access. This should occur alongside resolving immediate conflicts, with a consistent focus on equity and justice as systemic preconditions for sustainable human-nature relations in fisheries.

Document Type:	Article
Programme Area:	PA3
Research affiliation:	Social Sciences > Social-Ecological Systems Analysis
Refereed:	Yes
Open Access Journal?:	Yes
DOI:	https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-16389-300330
ISSN:	1708-3087
Date Deposited:	17 Sep 2025 13:08
Last Modified:	17 Sep 2025 13:08
URI:	https://cris.leibniz-zmt.de/id/eprint/5709

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