DII working paper no.2007/24
Exports of non-traditional products from developing to developed countries have increased
rapidly over the past two decades. However, one of the major challenges facing developing
countries in seeking to maintain and expand their share of global markets is stringent food-safety
requirements in industrialized countries. The effects of compliance with these requirements and
their distributional impacts among actors in developing countries are generally not well known.
Based on this understanding, a study was conducted on the Tanzanian side of Lake Victoria (in
Mwanza and Mara regions) to evaluate the effects of food-safety standards on the livelihoods of
actors in the Nile perch value chain using the Livelihoods Analysis and Change in Net Income
(CNI) approach. The effects of food-safety standards were imputed as the residual values be-
tween the “with” and “without” compliance scenarios for a specified actor category.
The results of the analysis showed that the livelihood platform and income portfolios for the
“with”-compliance scenario was relatively more favourable than that in the alternative, “without”-
compliance scenario. The difference in human capital and livestock holdings between fishers /
crews in the two scenarios was however non-significant (P<0.05). The results of the analysis also
showed that both the costs and benefits of compliance with food-safety standards were consider-
able. Actors in the Nile perch export supply chain (the “with”-compliance scenario) obtained the
highest gross revenues and net returns, as well as incurring the highest operating costs. However,
the profit margins, assets and income portfolios for most actors upstream of the fishery value
chains were generally lower in both the “with” and “without” compliance scenarios than those of
the actors in the subsequent stages. The overall analysis of issues in this paper suggests the need
to ensure more effective and coherent planning in order to safeguard the future of the fishery
sector, ensure an appropriate regulatory framework, strengthen the capacity of the stakeholders
to manage the resource sustainably, develop safeguards for ensuring an equitable distribution of
fishery benefits, and increase collaboration among the riparian states of Lake Victoria between
them and development partners.