Fishing and Farming Economies in the Southwestern Coastal Area of Madagascar
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20148874 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Taku Iida (0000-0002-5890-8228, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2001 |
| Volume | 2001 |
| Issue | 57 |
| Pages | 37-54 |
| Publication date | 2001-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of African Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0065-4140 • E-ISSN: 1884-5533 |
| Publisher | Japan Association for African Studies (PUBLISHER • JP) |
| DOI | 10.11619/africa1964.2001.37 |
| OpenAlex | W2319939593 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 4 |
This paper describes and analyzes the household economy of the Vezo in the southwestern coastal area of Madagascar, with special reference to production activities and diet, based on research conducted in two villages: F (Ampasilava) on the coast and K (Ankilimalinika) which is 4km inland from F. While these two villages are located close to each other and have similar cultural and linguistic traditions, a slight difference in their geographical locations produces differences in both their economic and dietary life: 1) The F villagers go more frequently to the sea for fishing, whereas the K villagers specialize more in agriculture than in fishing; 2) Thus, the F villagers acquire fish more easily, whereas the K villagers obtain substantial amounts of agricultural crops, such as maize, sweet potatoes and melons; 3) The main products in F village are consumed as a side dish, while those in K village are staple food.The most marked contrast between the two villages is revealed by the analysis of food procurement: K villagers tend to make a living based on the principle of risk reduction, whereas F villagers on the profit maximization. The K villagers, who produce major crops for their own consumption, thus reduce the risk of price increases in uncertain Malagasy national economy. At the same time, they sell most crop immediately after the harvest, in order to reduce another new type of “risk”: food-stock loss due to the claims of relatives, which formerly served as a mechanism for risk avoidance. The balance of these two opposite risk-reduction motives characterizes strongly the households in K village. The F villagers, on the other hand, depend on the trade of fish to provide stable foods, despite the the risk of price increases. Their subsistence would be impossible without a large amount of cash income from fishing in remote areas for exported products, such as sea cucumbers and shark fins. Thus, their strategy, can be regarded as profit maximization
Agricultural economics · Agriculture · Economics · Fishery · Fishing · Geography · Profit (economics) · Socioeconomics · Staple food · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |