par Lam, Si 
Promoteur Dahdouh-Guebas, Farid
Co-Promoteur Blanchard, Fabian;Nalovic, Michel
Publication Non publié, 2024-08-29
Promoteur Dahdouh-Guebas, Farid
Co-Promoteur Blanchard, Fabian;Nalovic, Michel
Publication Non publié, 2024-08-29
Mémoire
| Résumé : | The dried swim bladder (“fish maw”) of croakers, particularly the Acoupa weakfish(Cynoscion acoupa) and Green weakfish (Cynoscion virescens), is highly valued in Asia andcrucial for the profitability of the coastal artisanal fishery in French Guiana. However, theproduct's high value, coupled with weak governance and low enforcement, drives Illegal,Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, which is the main factor behind the decline offish stocks both locally and regionally. A value chain analysis (VCA), conducted throughstakeholder interviews and a Participatory Research Approach (PRA), revealed that the lackof legal processing and exportation in French Guiana creates unfair competition betweenlegal and illegal actors in fishing and swim bladder trading. Legal actors face higheroperational costs to comply with EU standards but do not receive clear benefits ofcompliance. Consequently, an informal processing and exporting market thrives, leading tosignificant economic losses for the local fishing sector and unequal profit distribution.Informal exporters, for instance, enjoy profit margins exceeding 170%. The study also foundthat the swim bladder supply chain in French Guiana is largely informal and unregulated. Toincentivize formalization, the development of a local processing and exporting industry issuggested, which could boost the sector's profits by providing direct access to Asianmarkets, particularly Hong Kong. Achieving successful formalization requires robustgovernance, combating IUU fishing, and strengthening the legal framework across thesupply chain. Additionally, providing a dedicated FAO code and HS code for swim bladdersand ensuring that stakeholders of varying socio-economic statuses can afford formalizationbenefits are essential. |
