Fish farming: A driver of diversification and resilience in rural livelihoods in Madagascar

In developing countries, diversifying rural livelihoods is a key strategy to enhance food security and strengthen household resilience to economic and climatic shocks. Within this dynamic, fish farming stands out as a promising activity, offering both nutritional benefits and additional income opportunities. Nevertheless, its concrete contribution to income structuring and vulnerability reduction at the local level remains insufficiently documented. This raises the following research question: to what extent does fish farming income contribute to the diversification and resilience of rural households according to the profiles of fish farmers? The underlying hypothesis is that this contribution varies significantly with the degree of integration of fish farming, becoming more decisive in highly specialized systems. This study analyzes the socioeconomic effects of fish farming on rural households in the Vakinankaratra region of Madagascar, with particular attention to its contribution to total income and its allocation. The methodology relies on a survey of 180 fish farmers and combines multivariate statistical analyses with strategic tools, including the strategic rectangle, benchmarking, and a prospective approach. The findings reveal three categories of fish farmers: emerging (61%), intermediate (22%), and advanced (17%), each displaying distinct levels of diversification and intensification. While agricultural income remains predominant, fish farming income is progressively evolving from a supplementary role to a more structuring one. Overall, fish farming appears as a lever for diversification whose impact depends on the level of integration, highlighting the need for differentiated policy interventions.