4.3 Phase Two: Middle Colonial Period, 1933-1950
4.3.2 Fisheries and Initial Transformations
During the colonial period, mainly, from the 1930s, the demand for fish in Zanzibar and East Africa, in general, was relatively higher than fishermen could offer from the sea. Therefore, additional fish supply was obtained through either imports of fish from outside the East African region or obtained from lakes, mostly Lake Victoria.
For that reason, fish were not only sourced from Zanzibar rather, fish were also obtained from Mombasa in Kenya and other areas such as Kisumu and Mainland Tanzania regions surrounding Lake Victoria. There were two major sources of fish,
365 ZNA/AU7/42 Mangrove Industry: Mangrove Working Scheme
namely, Lake Victoria and the Indian Ocean. Fresh water fish, especially Tilapia, had shown signs of depletion.366 Accordingly, the colonial government sought ways to control the situation. The first option was to restrict fishing in Lake Victoria to allow for a recovery period. However, that was immediately considered an unwise option since it would accelerate more fishing in the Indian Ocean, which also needed a kind of control after thorough study. Therefore, although there were increased fishing efforts on the inland waters of Lake Victoria, especially on part of Kenya, the colonial government thought about ways to control the situation without destroying the balance between marine and fresh water fisheries, which was still under control at the time.367
Before 1939, there was a relatively low demand for fish on the coast of east Africa in general. However, it seems that the demand was never met since there was an ever-increasing importation of fish from Aden and Arabia.368 Subsequently, when the war erupted, the demand for fish increased enormously, mainly from the army stationed near the coast of Mombasa.369 After the Second World War, the colonial governments in East Africa observed a general shortage of fish in the countries of Kenya, Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar. In addition, they noted that there was an increasing demand for fish and fish products, which did not cope with production.370 A number of factors contributed to the problems, including increased demand for animal protein to feed soldiers during the war. Given that large part of animal protein was obtained from fish, soldiers received a large share. Also, apart from the fact that Zanzibar was reported to have a better position in terms of knowledge and skills of local fishermen in the country, there were relatively poor fishing technology and skills applied by the local communities in fishing in East African littoral waters. The better fishing technology could have enabled the offshore fishery to achieve a better catch.371
While there was a British fishing company that contributed to the fish catch, the catch was nonetheless, insufficient. That was partly due to the fact that a large portion
366 ZNA/AB46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme
367 ZNA/AB46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme
368 ZNA/AB46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme
369 Proposed Research Unit with Shore Base at Shimoni: Present Position of the Sea Fisheries, ZNA/AB46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme
370 ZNA/AB46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme
371 Proposed Research Unit with Shore Base at Shimoni: Present Position of the Sea Fisheries, ZNA/AB46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme
of fish was not going to the local community in Zanzibar but to vessels that called at ports of Mombasa and Zanzibar. Apart from poor fishing methods, another factor that contributed to decreased in fish catch in the area encompassed signs of a structural degradation of fisheries resources in Zanzibar during the colonial period,372 partly owing to concentration of inshore fishing efforts, as opposed to large scale or offshore fishing. The British colonial administration did not encourage offshore fishing.373 Majority of inshore fish are related to sea grass and coral related fish, which have a slow rate of breeding as well as growth. They also have relatively slow movements, especially during their adulthood374 that made it easy for fishermen to catch them.
Therefore, with these characteristics together with concentrated fishing efforts and adding that other fishermen used destructive fishing methods in the area, the result was likely to be low fish catch and comparably small sized fish.375
However, one would logically think that trend of importation of dried fish would have checked and counter balanced the local demand for fish in Zanzibar and other surrounding parts as far as fish demand was concerned. However, that was not the case, because apart from fish importation, there was also a rising demand for fish, which went simultaneously with diminishing quantity of fish catch in the area.376
Large amounts of dried fish were imported from Arabia, especially from Yemen and Oman. For example, the total of fish imports in Zanzibar in 1927 was about 561 tons, whereas Kenya imported about 700 tons from Arabia. Kenya also obtained supply of fish from Lake Victoria to supplement the demand.377
Such shortage of marine fish supply was caused by a number of reasons, including the declining number of fishing vessels. Accordingly, the fish catch also
372 See; Proposed Research Unit with Shore Base at Shimoni, 8.
373 C. C. Johnston, "Correspondence - East African Fisheries" in The Tanganyika Standard, 11.07.1949.
374 Proposed Research Unit with Shore Base at Shimoni.
375 See the following: S. Mangi and T.R. McClanahan, "The effect of a Marine Protected area and the Exclusion of Beach seines on Coral reef fisheries," in Jan Hoorweg and Nyawira Muthiga (eds), Recent Advances in Coastal Ecology: Studies from Kenya, (Leiden: African Studies Centre), 2003, 172 and Proposed Research Unit with Shore Base at Shimoni, 8.
376 Proposed Research Unit with Shore Base at Shimoni, 8.
377 See for example: Erik Gilbert, Dhows and the Colonial Economy of Zanzibar, 1860 – 1970, (Oxford:
James Currey Ltd., 2004), 52; Cecil von Bonde, A Preliminary Survey of the Marine Fisheries of Zanzibar, 3; Kenya Colony, “Proposed Research Unit with Shore base at Shimoni - Summary”
Z.N.A./AB.46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme, 1948.
declined probably because there was no significant improvement of fishing vessels (dug-out canoes and dhows) and other fishing gears (like hand lines, beach seines, gillnets, cast-nets, basket traps and fixed stake traps). For instance, the number of fishing crafts in the coast of Kenya declined from 2000 in 1939 to 900 in 1948.378 Likewise, the total amount of fish obtained per annum was 340 tons, of which 220 tons came from the local African fishermen and 120 tons from a European fishing company.
As mentioned before, at around the same period there was a sharp increment in demand for fish to feed the Navy and Air Force stationed near the coast of East Africa, who demanded large amounts of fish. Furthermore, feeding a large number of plantation labourers contributed to a higher demand for fish. For instance, there was higher demand for fish from Amboni Sisal Estates in Tanga.
However, the east African coast is relatively disadvantaged as far as artisanal fishery (which is the mainstay of the local fishing communities) is concerned379 and consequently, has limited availability of marine resources compared to other coastal areas such as the Seychelles and the Arabian Peninsula whereby dried fish (the Sharks - papa and Kingfish - Nguru in Kiswahili)380 were imported.381 Therefore, with such short supply of fish in the area, the price also crept up, which was commercially advantageous to fish sellers as opposed to fishermen. Artisanal fishermen sold their products to fish traders, who processed the fish to sell to consumers, while some of them sold the fish to other large traders. However, the law required fishers to sell their products through the government designated markets.382
378 Kenya Colony, “Proposed Research Unit with Shore base at Shimoni - Summary” Z.N.A./AB.46/23 Zanzibar Fishing Industry: Fisheries Research Scheme, 1948.
379 Peninah Aloo, "Marine Resources" in Jan Hoorweg, Dick Foeken and R. A. Obudho Eds., Kenya Coast Handbook: Culture, Resources and Development in the East African Littoral, (London:
Transaction Publishers, 2000), 48
380 Swahili words for the Shark and Kingfish, respectively, which are very important dried fish in the east African coast, popularly known as ‘Papa na Nguru.’
381 See the following: Sheriff, Dhow Cultures of the Indian Ocean, 33, 45, and Abdul Sheriff, "Slave Trade and Its Fallout in the Persian Gulf" in Gwyn Campbell (ed.), Abolition and its Aftermath in Indian Ocean Africa and Asia, (London: Routledge - Taylor and Francis, 2005), 98.
382 See the following: Cecil von Bonde, A Preliminary Survey of the Marine Fisheries of Zanzibar, 12;
and Tjalling Dijkstra, "Food Marketing" in Jan Hoorweg, Dick Foeken and R. A. Obudho Eds., Kenya Coast Handbook: Culture, Resources and Development in the East African Littoral, (London:
Transaction Publishers, 2000), 205
4.4 Phase Three: Late Colonial Period, 1950-1963