An adapted technology co-designed with women seaweed producers
Close-up of seaweed in a tubular net.
Flower Msuya
Women preparing their tubular nets from the boat.
Flower Msuya
The tubular nets technology was co-designed with women producers themselves to ensure it was adapted to their needs and became theirs.
Several tests were necessary to determine the optimal length of the nets (15m instead of 30m), and how to harvest them (opening them to remove the seaweed instead of cutting the seaweed outgrowth). This ensured the nets were adapted to the women's needs.
Participatory hands-on trials with the producers themselves enabled building handling capacity.
Responsibilisation of the women producers for monitoring the results of the different net configurations enabled appropriation of the innovation.
Close relations of the Sea PoWer team with the producers enabled to build trust and hope in the new technology.
The vast knowledge of the Sea PoWer team about seaweed production and the Zanzibar marine environment enabled to quickly propose suitable alternative modifications.
Giving responsibilities and a stake in the trials to the end users was crucial to build ownership and confidence in the use of the tubular net innovation.
Accounting for factors indirectly related to the handling of the technology itself, for example, need to know the marine environment (tides, depths), and need to master additional equipment and practices (working from a boat) was also important.
Engaging with seaweed buyers and other community members
A woman seaweed producer talks about her experience farming seaweed with tubular nets at an awareness raising and dissemination workshop in Zanzibar.
Cecile Brugere
Engagement with seaweed buyers and wider stakeholders aimed to raise awareness on the benefits of tubular nets for women's empowerment and entrepreneurship.
Inviting seaweed buyers to see the pilot sites, meet the women raised their awarenes about the tubular nets innovation and the activity of the women members of the Sea PoWer initiative. It has also enabled to establish a dialogue between the producers and the buyers, and potentially a new market outlay.
A workshop with buyers, representatives of the government and academia enabled the women producers to tell their story more widely and and showcase their empowerment. Small community meetings were also important in this regard.
It is important to create opportunities, give encouragement and provide a safe space for the women producers to share their story, demonstrate their new skills and power, as they may not be used to doing so normally.
Men (in background) attend women's training session on tubular nets.
Flower Msuya
Activities led by SeaPoWer were carefully designed to gradually build capacity, progressively raise awareness and challenge perceived boundaries. They aimed to challenge taboos, fears and restrictions related to women going out to sea with the introduction of basic seafaring and safety skills, and working in equal capacity alongside selected male boat skippers, who needed to become accustomed and also change their attitudes to women's presence on board boats.
This is part of the transformative approach of innovation for women's empowerment promoted by Sea PoWer.
Deeply engrained cultural practices and ways of thinking, held by both men and women, require repeated action, support and perseverance over extensive periods of time to evolve.
Engaging with some male members of the community from the outset enabled to bring them onboard the initiative in a supporting and understanding role, rather than a directing and overpowering one (as boat handlers and snorklers).
Women now want to learn to swim and drive the boat to reduce their dependency on men, highlighting a shift in traditional attitudes. Deepwater farming represents a shift in gender attitudes because it challenges the traditional belief that the deepwater is an area accessed by men due to women's limited mobility and role in society.
One needs to be very sensitive to the dynamics of the power and control relationships between men and women in more conservative societies. It is important that men are women's allies, but they should not be allowed to take over.
Women learn safety at sea skills (e.g. wear life jackets)
C
Women working together to seed the tubular nets.
Cecile Brugere
Sea PoWer facilitated the formation of two groups of women producers. It involved them in the design of the tubular net technology (e.g. testing net length and harvesting method) to ensure that the technology was adapted to their needs.
SeaPoWer developed the capacity of producers to:
Construct tubular nets.
Plant and monitor seaweed growth.
Record keeping.
Be safer at sea (e.g. wear life jackets on the boat).
Handle boats with men.
Construct basket traps to catch fish under the nets.
Sea PoWer also encouraged women to work together as a group, as several people are needed to seed and harvest the nets and supported their organisational capacity.
Availability of equipment and technical support. Sea PoWer supplied the materials to build the tubular nets and farm seaweed with them (fishing nets, ropes, PVC tubes, boat). This enabled to lift constraints related to accessing equipment, and perceived risk of engaging in this new form of production. Sea PoWer closely monitored their uptake of the technology.
Willingness to cooperate. Social collaboration was highlighted by women engaged with Sea PoWer as a critical enabling environment to promote knowledge sharing for adaptation.
Factors outside the technology itself, such as perceptions, engrained practices, are just as important as the technological design. For example, overcoming fear and taboo to go on the boat and learning safety at sea skills (e.g. wear a life jacket) goes hand-in-hand with using the technology (tubular nets) themselves.
The gains in productivity achieved from using the improved farming technology need to be offset by the time it takes to become familiar with it, especially for women who typically already bear the brunt of the labour burden in the household.
Engaging with seaweed buyers and other community members
An adapted technology co-designed with women seaweed producers
Fishers' leadership enhanced
The enhanced leadership of the fishers who are elected to represent their communities in MIHARI’s different activities is vital for the network to exist as a true fishers’ movement. Their self-confidence to speak up and active participation in the discussions and consultations, support and feed the partnership between NGOs and LMMAs communities.
Capacity building in leadership, negotiations skills, public speaking.
The fact that the MIHARI network is an official organisation, that gives small-scale fishers legitimacy to engage and take part in negotiations.
Being an elected representative gives accountability towards one’s community.
Consultations on fishers needs, in terms of training, was important to provide the right capacity building activities.
Learning by doing and peer-to-peer exchange were as important as formal trainings.
In 2015 started the consultations among all MIHARI members, to establish a clear and functioning structure. There are 45 fishers who are elected to be representatives of their region, and who meet regionally or nationally every year. They also have opportunities during these events to approach directly government officials, which has had a great impact.
Existence of community leaders who were motivated and engaged to contribute to MIHARI governance.
Fishers trainings since the creation of MIHARI, which allowed the emergence of leaders.
It was important to have a consultative process to legitimate the elected members of the national LMMA board.
