Economics of open-access fisheries: A case of factors affecting the revenue of coastal or inshore longline fisheries in Pakistan

Abstract

This study attempts to determine the effects and strength of association of several techno-economic factors affecting the revenue for a sample of open-access inshore longline boats in the coastal waters of Pakistan. Prior research focuses on two non-parametric test statistics, namely Spearman’s rank correlation and Kendall’s coefficient of concordance for the estimation of coefficients due to the non-normal distribution of the data. The estimated values of correlation coefficients for the catch
(ρ_{revenue, catch} = 0.721, τ_b = 0.567), trips (ρ_{revenue, trips} = 0.707, τ_b = 0.574) and crew (ρ_{revenue, crew} = 0.715, τ_b = 0.587) indicates a strong positive relationship on revenue generation. Similarly, the intercorrelations between the crew on the catch (ρ_{crew, catch} = 0.56, τ_b = 0.45) and crew on trips (ρ_{crew, trips} = 0.55 τ_b = 0.47) also show a strong positive association in Spearman’s rank correlation while the Kendall’s correlation shows a weak relationship. Furthermore, the estimated values of engine speed show a very weak association with revenue (ρ_{revenue, engine} = 0.25, τ_b = 0.18). Conclusively, the revenue increases with the increase in fish catch, sea trips and the number of crew members on board. Additionally, the results of engine speed signify that the coastal fishery is a less fuel-efficient and economically viable business for the fishermen community in the country.