Assessing Gender Roles in Dagaa Fishery Value Chain among Fishing Communities on Lake Victoria, A Case Study of Lake Victoria Beaches In Siaya County, Kenya

Fisheries in the East Africa region have suffered due to less emphasis given to some fishery specifically Dagaa (Rastrineobolaargentea), whose quantity is the highest of all the species in the Lake Victoria. Despite the importance of this resource in Kenya, there has been a concern of gender parity and inequality in terms of roles played by both gender in harvesting, processing, trading and marketing in the Dagaa fishery. This study analyzed gender roles in Dagaa Fishery Value Chain among fishing communities around Lake Victoria in Bondo Sub County, in Siaya County, Kenya. The study addressed the following objectives: Identified the various roles of men and women in Dagaa Fishery Value Chain, discussed factors influencing gender roles in Dagaa Fishery Value Chain, analyzed the barriers to women’s participation in certain Dagaa Fishery Value Chain and examined the strategies to overcome challenges in gender roles in Dagaa fishery value chain in Bondo Sub-County, Siaya County. The study adopted a cross-sectional research design. This study was guided by two models; gender analysis framework model that was developed by Sarah Longwe and supply chain model. Purposive sampling technique was used to select Bondo Sub-County and fishing community in Bondo Sub-County; random sampling technique was used to select five (5) fish landing sites/beaches where quantitative data were collected from 186 out of the targeted 188 primary respondents, from among the forty-four beaches of Lake Victoria in Bondo Sub-County. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS Version 25, and descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages were used in presenting analyzed data. The results were presented using tables and charts. The study findings revealed that majority of the boats and fishing gears were owned by men, motorized boats belonged to men while a higher percentage of females still had the paddled boats. While men dominated the fishing of Dagaa, women dominated processing and trading of Dagaa in the beaches. The study noted that men made higher returns than their female counterparts at all levels of Dagaa fishery value chain. The study concluded that there is a still wide disparity among gender roles in Dagaa fishery value chain. Most of the activities in the value chain are still dominated by men. This study recommends that women be encouraged to take part in Dagaa fishery value chains, empowerment of women to take part in transportation and distribution of Dagaa and application of various strategies such as joining SACCOs to access loans at low interest rates, formation of groups for ease of access to credit services and weakening patriarchy to mitigate factors affecting Gender roles in Dagaa fishery value chains.