The Efficacy of the Legal and Institutional Frameworks for Fisheries Enforcement and Licensing on the Stock of Commercial Fish Species in Lake Victoria, Uganda

Abstract

Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing has been identified as one of the important drivers of unsustainable management of fish stocks worldwide. Although, the government of Uganda has initiated regulations and institutions to address these concerns, over the years little progress has been achieved in controlling drivers of illegal fishing. The study employed sequential exploratory mixed methods design. A sample of 107 respondents was selected using clustered, purposive and convenient sampling and the data was collected using questionnaires and interviews and analyzed using logit models. Results demonstrate that monitoring control and surveillance is poor. The study found evidence of serious decline in mesh size in several net fisheries. Exploring the opinions of fishery experts through the analytical hierarchy process also showed that economic, social, fishing, and conservation contributed greatly to the occurrence of IUU fishing. Overall, close associations were observed between the range of determinants, with the probability of the occurrence of IUU fishing indicating that illegal fishing is a complex event that should be studied in different dimensions because of the involvement of a combination of factors. The knowledge obtained here can assist the relevant agencies in preventing this widespread problem, and with the practical rebuilding and more efficient conservation planning of fish stocks.