Fisherwomen’s Perception on the Constraints Hampering their Empowerment and Development: A Case Study of the Self Help Groups of Thoothukudi District, Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Marine fisheries constitute a valuable source of food
and employment, and a net contributor to the
nation’s balance of payment. The fisherwomen have
been facing several constraints of technical, financial,
organizational and policy realms, which affects
their social and economic empowerment. In this
regard, around 40 fisherwomen from Self Help
Groups (SHGs) of Tharuvaikulam fishing village in
Thoothukudi district (Tamil Nadu) was selected
randomly for data collection. The fisherwomen were
asked to rank the constraints according to their
perception of importance. Garrett Ranking Technique
was used to analyze the constraints in order
to find out the most significant factor which
influences the respondent. This technique helps to
precisely rank the preference of the respondents on
different factors. Of the seven production constraints,
high cost of inputs including finfish and
shellfish was ranked foremost. Of the five financial
constraints, lack of funds for starting and running
the business activities was the major constraint.
Among the five constraints that influenced cohesion
of the SHGs, the respondents opined that lack of
leadership and guidance affected the performance
of the SHGs. Lack of marketing skills was the single
most important marketing constraint. With regard
to performance constraints, lesser profits brought
down their performance. Further, lack of contact
between producer and consumer was identified as
the most important constraint, among six extension
constraints, that affected market access. Among the
seven entrepreneurship constraints, lack of lateral thinking and innovation denied them success in their business.