Fish trade, food and income security: an overview of the constraints and barriers faced by small-scale fishers, farmers and traders in the Lower Mekong Basin.

As riparian governments advoate freer trade and develop physical infrastructure, trade networks, including for aquatic living animals, trade will likely become more efficient through largers investment by fewer traders. Whether this trade efficiency and economic growth are accompanied with a progressive distributional change, among farmers and fishers, is currently under debate. Without a clearer policy agenda that reflects the diversity and social nature of fish trade relations at the local levels, the ability of fishers, farmers, and traders to secure their food and income may be compromised.