Socio-Economic Survey PROCFish/C 2007
Cook Islands, 2007
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COK_2007_SES_PROCFISH_v01_M_v01_A_ESS
Socio-Economic Survey PROCFish/C 2007
| Name | Country code |
|---|---|
| Cook Islands | COK |
Socio-Economic/Monitoring Survey [hh/sems]
In late 2003/early 2004, the Pacific Community (SPC) conducted a survey of several Pacific regional fisheries authorities to identify the types of socioeconomic information needed to support reef fisheries management. In 2007, PROCFish/C project conducted fieldwork in Cook Islands in four different sites.
The coastal component of the Pacific Regional Coastal Fisheries Development Programme (CoFish) conducted fieldwork at four locations in the Cook Islands between February and October 2007. The Cook Islands was one of 17 Pacific Island countries and territories surveyed over a five- to six-year period under CoFish and its associated programme, PROCFish/C (Pacific Regional Oceanic and Coastal Fisheries Development Programme).
The objective of the survey was to provide baseline information on the status of reef fisheries and to help address the substantial information gaps that hinder their effective management.
Programme outputs included:
• implementation of the first comprehensive multi-country comparative assessment of reef fisheries (finfish, invertebrates, and socioeconomic aspects) undertaken in the Pacific Islands region using standardized methodologies across all survey sites;
• dissemination of country reports comprising a set of reef fisheries profiles for sites in each country to support coastal fisheries development and management planning;
• development of a set of indicators (or reference points for fishery status) to guide the preparation of local and national reef fishery management plans and monitoring programmes; and
• development of data and information management systems, including regional and national databases.
In the Cook Islands, survey work covered three disciplines, namely finfish, invertebrates, and socioeconomic studies, at each site. Fieldwork was undertaken by two teams consisting of five programme scientists and several local counterparts from the Ministry of Marine Resources. Capacity-building activities were conducted for local counterparts through training in survey methodologies, data collection procedures, and data entry into the programme database.
The four survey sites selected in the Cook Islands were Aitutaki, Palmerston, Mangaia, and Rarotonga.
Sample survey data [ssd]
Households
Scope
HOUSEHOLD
- Household size and composition;
- Ranked sources of household income and average household expenditure levels;
- Household consumption patterns and sources of food;
- Average number of fishers and fishing vessels per household.
INDIVIDUAL
- Educational attainment of adult household members;
- Timing, frequency, and seasonality of fishing activities, including the habitats targeted by fishers;
- Average catch volume and catch composition;
- Fishing methods and techniques used;
- Proportions of catch used for subsistence, gifts, sales, and preservation;
- Methods used for preserving finfish and invertebrates;
- Community fishing grounds and resource-use patterns;
- Fisheries management rules and practices;
- Major issues related to the use and management of marine resources;
- Quantities marketed by species or species groups;
- Quality and level of processing of marketed products;
- Prices in local currency and US dollars;
- Types of clients and markets served; and
- Perceived quantitative and qualitative changes in fisheries marketing over time.
Coverage
In Cook Islands, the four sites selected for the survey were Aitutaki, Palmerston, Mangaia and Rarotonga.
The survey covered de jure household members. All household members responding to the Finfishers and Invertebrate Fishers questionnaires were required to be 15 years of age or older and to be usual members of the surveyed household.
Producers and sponsors
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Coastal Fisheries Programme | Pacific Community (SPC) |
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Reef Fisheries Observatory | Technical assistance | |
| Ministry of Marine Resources | Government of Cook Islands | In-country assistance |
| Cook Island Marine Resource Institutional Stregthening Project | In-country assistance |
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| European Commission | Funding |
Sampling
The geographic scope of the socioeconomic survey at each site was determined by the size, characteristics, and use of the fishing grounds. The selection process was highly dependent on local marine tenure arrangements. For example, where fishing rights are community-owned, a fishing community includes all villages with access to a particular fishing ground. If fisheries activities are comparable across these villages, one or two villages may be selected as representative samples and surveyed. The results may then be extrapolated to all villages accessing the same fishing grounds under the same marine tenure system.
Most households included in the survey were selected through simple random sampling, as were the finfish and invertebrate fishers associated with those households. In addition, key participants in one or more specific fisheries were selected for supplementary interviews. Random sampling was used to provide an average and representative picture of fisheries activities within each community, including non-fishing households, households engaged in finfish and/or invertebrate fishing for subsistence purposes, and households involved in small-scale artisanal fishing.
This approach assumes that the selected communities are predominantly traditional, relatively small (approximately 100-300 households), and largely homogeneous from a socioeconomic perspective. Similarly, the gender composition and participation patterns observed in the survey are assumed to be representative of the wider community. Subject to adequate sample sizes (at least 25-30 percent of all households), harvest estimates reported by male and female fishers may therefore be extrapolated to assess the fisheries production and impacts of the community as a whole.
Survey instrument
The questionnaires are designed to allow a minimum dataset to be developed for each site, enabling:
- the community's dependency on marine resources to be characterised;
- assessment of the community's engagement in, and the possible impact of, finfish and invertebrate harvesting; and
- comparison of socioeconomic information with data collected through PROCFish/C resource surveys.
The questionnaires are divided into four main areas:
- Household Survey: incorporating demographics, selected socioeconomic parameters, and consumption patterns;
- Survey of Fishers (finfish and invertebrate): incorporating data by habitat and/or specific fishery;
- General Questionnaire targeting key informants: the purpose of which is to assess the overall characteristics of the site's fisheries; and
- Finfish and Invertebrate Marketing Questionnaires: targeting agents, middlemen, or buyers/sellers (shops and markets).
In addition to the questionnaires, two sets of size charts are provided to help assess the weight of fish and invertebrates caught and consumed. This is necessary because most village fishers do not use kilograms but local units of measurement (heaps, plastic bags, strings, baskets, etc.), which are difficult to translate into kilogram weights.
Data collection is performed using a standard set of questionnaires developed by PROCFish/C's socioeconomic component, including a household survey (key socioeconomic parameters and consumption patterns), a finfish fisheries survey, an invertebrate fisheries survey, a finfish marketing survey, an invertebrate marketing survey, and a general information questionnaire for key informants. In addition, further observations and relevant details are noted and recorded in a non-standardized format.
The questionnaires are fully structured and closed-ended, although open-ended questions may be added on a case-by-case basis when required.
Data collection
| Start | End |
|---|---|
| 2007-02-01 | 2007-10-31 |
- Face-to-face paper [f2f]
If translation was required, each interview was conducted jointly by the leader of the project's socioeconomic team and the local counterpart. In cases where no translation was needed, the project's socioeconomist could work individually. Selected interviews could be conducted by trainees receiving advanced field training, but trainees were monitored by project staff in case clarification or support was needed.
Most of the data were collected through face-to-face interviews. The names of respondents were recorded on each questionnaire to facilitate cross-identification of fishers and households during data collection and to ensure that each fisher interview was complemented by a household interview. Linking data from household and fishery surveys was essential to permit joint data analysis. However, all names were removed once data entry had been finalized, ensuring that the information provided by respondents remained anonymous.
Team members were expected to be familiar with the objectives of the survey, their role in it, and the survey's contribution to resource management. They were required to understand the relationship, importance, and content of the entire set of questionnaires to ensure that the data collected were relevant, reliable, and accurate. The tasks undertaken by each team member were to be clearly defined and agreed upon in advance. It was also important that survey team members were interested in meeting members of local communities, were patient in asking similar questions repeatedly, and were able to listen to and engage with local people through an open, understandable, and non-manipulative communication process.
The project utilized a "snapshot approach" that allocated 5-7 working days per site (with four sites per country). This timeframe generally allowed approximately 25 households, together with a corresponding number of associated finfish and invertebrate fishers, to be covered by the survey. The total number of finfish and invertebrate fishers interviewed also depended on the complexity of the fisheries practiced by a particular community, the degree to which both men and women were engaged in finfish and invertebrate fisheries, and the size of the target population. Data from finfish and invertebrate fisher interviews were grouped by habitat and fishery, respectively. Consequently, the project's time and budget constraints, together with the complexity of a site's fisheries, determined the level of data representation: the larger the population and the number of fishers, and the more diversified the finfish and invertebrate fisheries, the lower the level of representation that could be achieved.
The interviews were conducted jointly by the Pacific Community (SPC) Coastal Fisheries Programme and the Cook Islands Ministry of Marine Resources.
Negotiation
A survey could not begin or be implemented without the consent and cooperation of the target community or communities. It was advisable to identify in advance how to approach communities, keep them informed, and ensure their ownership of the data. One of the major responsibilities of the team leader was to approach the target communities at an early stage to inform them about the scope and objectives of the planned survey and the reasons for selecting the respective community or communities. The team leader was required to request their agreement to participate and, more importantly, gain their full support for and engagement in the exercise. Survey team members also needed to be aware of local customs and cultural protocols and to proceed accordingly.
The community needed to be fully informed of:
- the reasons for and objectives of the survey;
- the contribution required from the community;
- how the data would be collected;
- how the data would be used;
- who would be responsible for data management; and
- the form in which, and the timing with which, results and possible recommendations would be returned to the government authorities and the communities concerned.
Pilot Test
The proposed methods, approaches, and questionnaires were based on tests carried out and experience gained within the framework of two long-term projects implemented by SPC's Reef Fishery Observatory.
Pilot testing of the methods, approach, and questionnaires was therefore not mandatory. It could, however, be undertaken to familiarize and train survey team members and to determine the most appropriate language and approach for engaging with the target community and conducting individual interviews.
It should be borne in mind that the questions provided in the questionnaires served as a guide to the data required. The sequence of questions was arranged in a logical order according to the information needs identified. The sequence and the way questions were ultimately formulated and asked could vary depending on the situation, the interviewer, and the respondent.
Data processing
A software programme (SEMCoS) has been developed in tandem with this manual to assist in automatically performing all necessary analyses and producing outputs from the data collected.
Data Access
| Is signing of a confidentiality declaration required? | Confidentiality declaration text |
|---|---|
| yes |
The Pacific Data Hub - Microdata Library, is responsible for improving the accessibility and availability of datasets and promoting new ways of using and reusing data for current and future use. These datasets have been modified in such a way that the possibility of identifying individuals or households is minimised. They are made available to individual researchers, universities and research institutions subject to a number of conditions known as Terms of Use. (See https://microdata.pacificdata.org/index.php/terms-of-use). |
Public use file, accessible to all.
"Pacific Community's Coastal Fisheries Programme, Cook Islands PROCFish/C - Socio-Economic survey 2007 (SE-PROCFISH 2007), Version 01 of the public-use dataset (2007), provided by the Microdata Library. https://microdata.pacificdata.org/index.php/home"
Disclaimer and copyrights
The user of the data acknowledges that the original collector of the data, the authorized distributor of the data, and the relevant funding agency bear no responsibility for use of the data or for interpretations or inferences based upon such uses.
Contacts
| Name | Affiliation | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Fisheries Programme | Pacific Community (SPC) | https://coastfish.spc.int/contact-us?lang=en |
Metadata production
DDI_COK_2007_SES_PROCFISH_v01_M_v01_A_ESS_FAO
| Name | Abbreviation | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statistics for Development Division | Pacific Community | Documentation of the study | |
| Statistics Division | ESS | Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations | Metadata adapted for FAM |