More than half of all fishing households in beautiful Betel-Nut village in West Sumatra are poor according to government statistics. Ongoing research with poor fishermen and their families is unearthing the causes of this poverty. “Basic infrastructure such as a good road, coupled with a senior high school would go a long way to giving fishers the leg up that they need” one local leader reported. “We don’t want handouts, just the opportunity to compete fairly”. Once they reach 16, children who want to continue high school need to move to the neighbouring city of Padang. For many fishermen the cost of finding board and accommodation is not worth the potential benefits. This leaves young males with few opportunities outside fishing and rice farming.

While this research agrees that physical infrastructure such as roads and schools are needed, it also demonstrates that poverty in Betel-Nut village is a combination of many human, social, economic and natural factors. Fishermen report “there has been a drastic decline in catches over the last 20 years” and “the high value groupers and snappers that we used to catch have got smaller and smaller”. This has forced many younger fishermen to look for work on larger boats in neighbouring fishing ports, leaving the old guard to carry on the traditional beach seine net routines.

So is the outlook for this fishing village really bleak? If villagers continue to heavily depend on a declining stock then history shows us they are heading down a dead end. However most fishermen already have a diverse livelihood portfolio. They return from the sea and go to the rice fields, they collect firewood, they raise livestock, their extended family may process the fish. This village is rich in solidarity (social capital) that could be harnessed not only in times of need or for weddings but to develop alternative livelihoods such as fish farming and tourism that would supplement incomes. Experience in other fishing villages demonstrates that building cooperation towards a shared brighter future is challenging, and it will be important to find and empower individuals with a personal commitment to help others.