EFFECT OF SELECTED INSECTICIDE ON WHITEFLY (Bemisia tabaci) INFESTING BRINJAL PLANTS © 2015Asian Economic and Social Society. All rights reserved ISSN(P): 2304-1455/ISSN(E):2224-4433 Volume 6(2), 36-40 36 CHILDREN INVOLVEMENT IN ARTISANAL FISHING: A CASE STUDY OF LAGOS LAGOON, NIGERIA Fakayode, O. S., Adeogun, O. A., Unah, L. R., and Bolaji, D. A. Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria Abstract 1 Children involvement in artisanal fishing was investigated between 2013 and 2014 to assess the percentage number of children involved in fishing on Lagos Lagoon, their roles, contribution and the effects of the activities on their livelihood. Structured and unstructured questionnaires were conducted by the researchers. Data collected were collated and analyzed using frequency distribution and percentages. The average number of boats fishing was 70 boats while average number of people counted was 168 and 55% were children between 3 – 17 years. During the study, we recorded a female which accounted for 0.2% while male was 99.8%, 6% of which were going to school and the roles played were paddling, operating engine, bailing water, sorting fish, casting net, setting gear. Enforcing law on the fisher folks to stop involving their children may jeopardize the effort of government on fish production, therefore the best way to reduce child labour in artisanal fishing is that government should intensify the right support in terms of aids and infrastructures to fisher folks on the ways of improving fishing methods for sustainable management of the fishery to support their children education. Keyword: Children, fishing, Lagos lagoon and government 1. INTRODUCTION Fish is an important source of both food and income to many people in developing countries. In Africa, as much as 5% of the population, some 35million people depends wholly or partly on the fisheries sector for their livelihood (FAO, 1996). Quite a sizeable proportion of the Nigerian population depends on fishing as a source of income (Tobor, 1984). Apart from being an income earner to many Nigerians especially people in coastal, riverine and lake areas of the country, some people earn their living from fish processing and marketing while others engaged in fisheries research (Akeredolu, 1990). The capacity of artisanal fisheries to play its triple role of a food supplier, employment provider and income earner in the Nigerian economy depends on the number of people involved in the activities. Fishing has become a way of life and the primary occupation of the coastal dwellers that depend on it for their livelihood and subsistence. A gradual decline in capture fisheries production has rapidly widened the gap between the demand and supply of fish, especially coupled with a continually growing population (Nwabueze, 2010). This has resulted in various activities which women have been active participants both in fishing and post – harvest activities, like processing, preservation and marketing (Ajayi et al., 1989; Wakoma, 1991; Alamu, 2000; Shalesha & Stanley, 2000). Nwabueze (2010) reported 11.5% of fish farmers in Delta state to be women. Corresponding author’s Name: Fakayode, O. S. Email address: sofakfemi@yahoo.com Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development journal homepage: http://aessweb.com/journal-detail.php?id=5005 mailto:sofakfemi@yahoo.com mailto:sofakfemi@yahoo.com mailto:sofakfemi@yahoo.com mailto:sofakfemi@yahoo.com Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, 6(2)2016, 36-40 37 Children in Nigeria are known to be engaged in the worst forms of child labour, particularly in dangerous activities in agriculture and domestic services (Adeokoya & Fashina, 2007; ILO, 2011; ITUC, 2011; U.S Department of Labor’s Bureau of international labor affairs, 2011). In rural areas, most children work in agriculture, producing crops such as cassava, cocoa and tobacco (Adeokoya & Fashina, 2007; Nwabueze, 2010). Activities of men and women have been identified in artisanal fisheries, despite the facts that Lagos State government disclosed that the state government will no longer tolerate any form of abuse on children in the state yet we do see some children on Nigerian waters especially on Lagos Lagoon every day, therefore there is need to study the activities, percentage number of children involved, age distribution, the roles played by these children, their contribution to fish production, percentage attending school and the effects on their livelihood. 2. MATERIALS AND METHODS This study covered all the part of Lagos Lagoon. Primary data for the study were collected between the hour of 09.00 and 14.00 GMT on working days for six months (i.e. September, 2013 – February, 2014) from a cross section of fishers using structured and unstructured questionnaires. The questionnaires were conducted by the researchers, with the assistance of enumerators. Data collected were collated and analyzed using frequency distribution and percentages. Factors considered were total number of boats fishing, total number of people in the boat, total number of children in the boat, age and educational background of the children in the boat, their dialects and the children’s roles in the boats and the people targeted were fishermen. 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The total number of boats counted, number of people in the boats counted, number of boats with children, number of children in the boat, crew size of the children sitting in a boat are shown in table 1. The average number of boats fishing counted during the study period was 70 boats and the average number of children was 92 per month which were 55% of the population fishing during the study, 241 children were interviewed during the period, 194 children answered by themselves while parents answered for 47 children. Table 1: Children involved in artisanal fishing Months Number of boats counted Total number of people in all the boats Number of boat with children Total number of children in the boat Crew size of the people sitting in a boat Crew size of the children sitting in a boat September,2013 60 144 56 74 3 2 October, 2013 113 270 97 152 3 2 November, 2013 46 120 41 70 3 2 December,2013 60 152 50 84 3 2 January,2014 74 172 69 88 3 2 February,2014 65 154 55 86 3 2 Average size 70 169 61 92 3 2 During the study, we recorded a female which accounted for 0.2% while male was 99.8%. Girls were assisting their mothers in fish processing and marketing, sometimes the female children stay at home to take care the younger ones. Iversen (2006) reported 86.0%, 87.2%, 86.1% and 91.3% of all children working in fishing in El Salvador, Ghana, Bangladesh and Philippines respectively to be male. The outdoor fishing jobs oblige women to leave their children alone, or put their eldest daughters, often still girls, in charge of the household. The consequences are not only economic and physical, but also emotional and psychological (Sumudra, 1995). Figure 1 shows the total number Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, 6(2)2016, 36-40 38 per age, children at the age of 12 years were more in numbers followed by 9years and 10 years while 3 – 5years and 16 – 17years were not many. Table 2 shows the age range of the children counted and Table 3 shows the role played in the boats, their local and the percentage number of children involved in each activity during the period of study. It was shown that the children were more involved in paddling and operating engine than casting net during this study. The age ranges of the children were 3- 17 (years). The age ranges are early stage of human life. Table 2: The age range of the children counted during the study Month Sept., 2013 Oct, 2013 Nov., 2013 Dec., 2013 Jan., 2014 Feb., 2014 Age range (year) 3 - 14 5 -17 3-15 4 -14 4-13 2 – 14 Figure 1: Total number of children at a particular age Most of these fishermen involved their children in order to be able to meet up with their daily responsibility, while some parents that have 4 to 6 children send 1 or 2 to school and involved others that are boys in fishing to cater for the ones that are schooling because of school fees and other amenities. Some of these children on their own sometimes with or without the permission of their parents followed their neighbour to fish and collect their share while some go on their own to fish use hook and line. The 87% of the children interviewed during the study were assisting their parents to meet home needs while 9% with neighbour and 4% with friends. The children reported fishing with their parents during the study period believed they were assisting the family so they are not collecting share from the catches while the children reported fishing with their neighbour and friends do collect compensation and share from the catches but they did not disclose the percentage and what they do with the share Table 3: The role played by the children and their age Role Paddling Operating engine Bailing water Sorting fish Fishing with hook and Line Sitting down doing nothing Casting net Fishing crab Setting gear (arranging net) Children age range (year) 8 - 17 10 – 15 3 - 17 4 – 14 5 – 12 3 – 4 15 12 - 15 7 - 14 % 26 16 11 19 3 1 6 7 11 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 N u m b er o f th e ch il d re n Age (years old) Frequency Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, 6(2)2016, 36-40 39 Table 4 shows the percentage of the children attending school at the period of this study and level of education was primary school. The major local dialect of 86% were Egun while the remained 14% were Ilaje and unidentified Yorubas; Majority of these fishermen lives at Makoko while others came from Bayeiku, Ikate–Elegunshi, Langbasa, Shogunro (very close to Makoko), Bariga, Oworonsoki etc. 55% of these fishermen were targeted fish only, 25% fish and shrimps and 20% crabs. Table 4: Percentage of children attending School Month September, 2013 October, 2013 November, 2013 December, 2013 January, 2014 February, 2014 Children attending school (%) 10.7 8.2 9.8 16 2.9 10.9 The types of gear recorded during the study were casting nets, drift nets, hook and line, and crab traps which are part of over 50 different types of fishing gears that Nigeria, fishers use (Udolisa et al., 1994). 30% of the fishermen were using motorized while others were using non – motorized but they all paddle at the point of catching. The size of the fishes caught are very small, which may be as a result of over exploitation of the area, Bravo-Ureta & Evenson (1994) noted that where there were no local alternatives to fishing, fisher folks were either forced to over-exploit fishery resources above the level that would occur if alternative livelihoods and income sources were available to them or to migrate to urban areas. 4. CONCLUSION The artisanal fishery of the Lagos Lagoon, Lagos State holds great potentiality in terms of natural yield which could support the government strides towards employment generation, poverty alleviation, food security and supply of animal protein to the teeming Nigerian living in Lagos. It is recommended that government should intensify the right support in terms of aids and infrastructures to fisher folks on the ways of improving fishing methods for sustainable management of the fishery also to support their children education. Enforcement of law on the fisher folks to stop involving their children in fishing may jeopardize the effort of government on fish production, therefore the best way to reduce child labour in artisanal fishing is to orientate and assist the parents involved by providing education whereby parents will not spend much or need to involve a child to sponsor the other. Views and opinions expressed in this study are the views and opinions of the authors, Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development shall not be responsible or answerable for any loss, damage or liability etc. caused in relation to/arising out of the use of the content. References Adeokoya, A. E., & Fasina, O. O. (2007).Occupational safety needs of farm children in South West Nigeria. Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences, 4(1), 18-22. Ajayi, T. O., Ajinle, A. O., Omolise, R. E. K., Bolade, E. O., & Omotoyo, N. O. (1989). Diagnostic survey of small scale capture and culture fisheries in Lagos State, Nigeria. NIOMR, Tech. 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