Abstract

The islands in the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia are well-known for their rich coral reef ecosystems. The government of Malaysia has established several Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to enable overexploited marine resources to recover and to conserve coral reef ecosystems. While fishing activities have been restricted in the no-take zone within MPAs since the 1990s, massive tourism development has taken place in the marine parks over the last decades. Most fishers have changed their occupations from fishing to ecotourism-based activities. Previous studies have found that ecotourism contributes substantially to the local economy, however, MPAs have adversely impacted the livelihoods of small-scale fishers due to lack of capacity to adapt to MPA-related changes (i.e., social, ecological and governance).

The objective of the study reported in this paper was to evaluate the impact of MPA management on the livelihoods and conservation objectives of the small-scale fishers. The data for the study was obtained through face-to-face interviews with 212 local fishers from two islands using a structured questionnaire. The results of the study show that small-scale fishers have restricted access to fishing due to the fishing ban in the no-take MPA areas. Although fishers are allowed to catch fish outside the MPA boundary, they are unable to go far away from the shore with their small fishing boat and gears. Weak enforcement to protect the resources from commercial fishers (trawling), poor understanding of no-take MPA regulations, and lack of local participation in MPA management are responsible for ineffective management.

The results of the study suggest that relevant agencies need to give priority to encouraging local participation in the decisionmaking processes of MPA management. The no-take MPAs are seen as threats to the small-scale fishers’ livelihoods based on the different levels of vulnerability and the development of tourism establishments in marine parks. Benefits from MPAs could be realized if low-income fishers could participate in the management of MPAs and receive support for human and institutional capacity building and empowerment.