A study of migrant fishers from Andhra Pradesh in the Gujarat marine fishing industry

Abstract

The International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) has been engaging with issues of concern to fishers and fish workers since its inception in 1986. Among other issues, it studies migration, both international and internal, in the fisheries and the particular vulnerabilities facing migrant fishers with a view to improving the conditions on board vessels through legal and policy interventions. ICSF also engaged with the process leading to the adoption of the Work in Fishing Convention at the 96th International Labour Conference of the International Labour Organization in 2007, of which India is a signatory. In June 2014, India, along with other member states of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), adopted the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication, whose charter encompasses employment conditions and social development of fishers, including that of migrants. ICSF believes that improving working and living conditions on fishing vessels can positively influence fisheries management.