KIWENGWA, Tanzania, Mar 2 (IPS) – As the tide falls on Zanzibar’s west coast, 13-year-old Asha* moves across the reef, her dress billowing in knee-deep water. She carries a plastic container and a knife. Since dawn, Asha has been busy curing octopuses and scaling fish to dry and sell.
“I help my mother. I don’t want her to do everything alone,” she says.
Along Zanzibar’s west coast, children like Asha keep the island’s blue economy running. But a recent study titled Situational analysis of child labor in coastal and marine activities in Zanzibarconducted by the University of Dar es Salaam, found that fishing and related maritime activities are the most dangerous forms of child labor in the archipelago.
Researchers who surveyed 90 children working in coastal and marine activities in Kiwengwa, Nungwi and Nyamanzi found that the extent of child labor is far from marginal. According to the study, 93 percent of children involved in marine work reported extreme fatigue, while 58.6 percent had suffered injuries from fishing spikes, boat engines or sharp equipment used in fishing and processing. School data from the same communities show that between 2012 and 2015, about 20 percent of enrolled students dropped out, with involvement in child labor cited as one of the main reasons. Children involved in fishing were also more than twice as likely to miss school periods or fail exams compared to those not involved in such work, underscoring how deeply sea labor shapes both the health and education of Zanzibar’s coastal children.
Under Tanzanian law, children under the age of 14 are not allowed to work, while children aged 15 to 17 are allowed to do light work that does not harm their health or affect their education. Hazardous work – including fishing, diving and hauling heavy nets – is banned for anyone under the age of 18, with penalties ranging from fines to prison. Despite this legal framework and Tanzania’s obligations to international labor agreements, enforcement remains patchy, especially in informal sectors such as fishing and domestic work, where child labor persists.
“When we asked children why they worked at sea, they said they were just helping their parents,” said Happiness Moshi, lead author of the study. “But many were unaware of the risks involved and what they were missing at school.”
For Asha, fishing is routine. When she sees an octopus in a cave, she pulls it with her bare hands, sometimes cutting sharp shells with her fingers.
She rinses each catch into the sea before dropping it into her tank, then joins other women and girls as she arranges fish and octopus in neat rows on wooden racks scattered across the open sand.
Early in the morning, Kiwengwa fish market, about 45 km from Stone Town, is bustling with activity. Wooden dhows travel along the coast. The air smells of salt water and diesel. Lanterns still glow from the night’s work before being extinguished one by one.
Bare-chested men wade into the water to steady the boats, while others haul in heavy nets filled with the night’s catch. Fish fall onto tarps and flash silver in the early morning light. Voices rise – shouted instructions, rapid negotiations, bursts of tired laughter. Children walk among them, some with basins full of fish almost half their size. Others drag rolls of damp gauze across the sand, stretching their thin arms.
Fourteen-year-old Salum* holds a wet rope as a boat sails forward. He has been awake since midnight, helping his uncle prepare for night fishing. The school reopened weeks ago. but he has not returned.
“I like fishing in the sea,” he says. “I learn a lot from my uncle.”
The children interviewed confirmed child labor as documented in the investigation and were identified through IPS field reporting.
“Many of these children toil in dangerous environments,” Moshi said. “We recorded cases of fatigue and injuries caused by fishing spikes and boat motors, as well as cases of children leaving school because they were involved in fishing.”
In villages along Zanzibar’s west coast, young boys as young as ten years old dive without protective equipment to loosen tangled nets or drag heavy catches ashore. Meanwhile, girls busy themselves with scaling, salting and drying fish, or wading for hours through tidal farms tending seaweed.
Fourteen-year-old Juma* learned to swim before he learned to read. Sitting on an overturned boat, he remembers nights when he almost drowned because of the surging waves.
“Sometimes the sea drags you down,” he says. “If you panic, you won’t come back.”
When poverty meets the tide
For most families in Kiwengwa, child labor is not a bad thing. It’s survival.
Fish stocks have declined as warming waters, coral degradation and overfishing reshape marine ecosystems. Families cannot make ends meet. When parents cannot support the family, children intervene.
“I don’t see anything wrong with children helping their families. They have been doing it for years,” said Othman Mahmood Ali, a village elder in Kiwengwa.
According to the researchers, the study avoided blaming parents, noting the close link between poverty and cultural practices. “Many parents in fishing communities believe that children should be involved in daily fishing activities to give them the skills they need to survive,” Moshi said. “But when that work affects children’s education or exposes them to danger, it crosses the line into exploitation.”
The research shows that poverty, food shortages and climate pressures are pushing children to work in the sea. Social protection programs rarely reach remote fishing villages, and even primary school costs – such as uniforms, supplies and small fees – can be too expensive for many families.
Asha still goes to school, but barely. On mornings when the tide is low, she misses classes. Her teacher has warned her mother that she is falling behind.
“I want to be a nurse,” says Asha.
The blue economy paradox
Zanzibar has positioned itself as a champion of the blue economy, attracting donor support for marine conservation, ecotourism, coral restoration and climate adaptation. Policy documents talk about sustainability and inclusivity. Child labor is rarely mentioned.
“The story of the blue economy is very clear,” says Nurdin Ali Maulid, a child rights advocate. “But not the labor behind it.”
The research shows that children are involved in almost every stage of the marine value chain. Fish cleaned by children is sold in urban markets. Seaweed harvested by girls enters global cosmetic and pharmaceutical supply chains. Yet children remain largely absent from official statistics and inspection systems.
Zanzibar authorities say they are trying to close that gap.
“Zanzibar wants to ensure that children are protected from exploitative work in our fisheries,” said Makame Chumu Shaalin, the Fisheries Coordination Officer. He said the government has launched targeted patrols along key coastal areas to monitor fishing activities and identify cases of children performing dangerous work.
Shaalin said officials are also working with fishing communities to raise awareness about the legal working age and the risks children face.
“We hold regular workshops with fishermen and their families to educate them about children’s rights and the long-term benefits of keeping children in school,” he said.
Reforms are also underway in the area of licensing.
“All fishing vessels must now be registered and meet safety standards,” Shaalin said. “This makes it easier for our inspectors to monitor compliance and intervene when children are working at sea.”
Authorities have also stepped up data collection, kept a register of fishing activities and reported cases of child labor to identify hotspots and track progress.
A childhood measured by the tide
When night falls in Kiwengwa, the boats return and leave. Their sails catch the wind to move the boat. Children gather along the shore, ready to unload, clean and carry the day’s catch.
Salum wipes the salty water from his eyes.
“I want to be a teacher,” he says. “But for now, this is my job.”
Zanzibar’s blue economy promises prosperity based on sustainability. Whether that promise can be kept without sacrificing the children remains unclear.
IPS UN office report
© Inter Press Service (20260302100322) — All rights reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service
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