Resilience was a defining theme at the recent World Economic Forum meeting in Davos. In the face of geopolitical instability, climate disruptions and economic uncertainty, leaders emphasised AI sovereignty, energy transition and nature-based solutions as pathways to future stability.  

Yet one message stood out: resilience is no longer only about technology or capital flows. As Shelley Steward III, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company observed afterwards, “Resilience and inclusion are now inseparable”.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the seafood sector.  

Small-scale fishers provide a significant share of the world’s seafood and underpin food security, livelihoods and ocean stewardship. Yet they continue to face systematic inequalities – limited market access, weak infrastructure, constrained finance and disproportionate exposure to climate and economic shocks. If these producers remain marginalised, resilience across the entire seafood sector is undermined.

 Addressing producer-level risks

A credible resilience strategy begins by identifying where risks are most concentrated. In the seafood sector these risks often sit at the start of the value chain.

Small-scale producers face compounded economic, political, environmental and social inequities. Evolving trade regimes, new due diligence expectations, and intensifying climate impacts increase demands on value chains, whilst the cost of compliance and adaptation frequently fall on producers themselves.

When small-scale fishers bear the operational costs of sustainability improvements without fair value distribution, risks are not eliminated but obscured and may be intensified.

Building resilience requires addressing inequality. ISEAL’s recent learning brief on measurement and analysis approaches for equitable impact, with a focus on underrepresented communities, reinforces this point: resilience depends on robust data and monitoring systems that explicitly consider equity. Understanding who benefits, who bears costs, and where barriers to participation exist enables more targeted and credible resilience strategies.

Strategic leadership in the seafood sector

ISEAL’s new paper 'Voices in the Seafood Sector' examines why inclusive approaches are critical to sectoral resilience. Drawing on interviews with leaders from industry associations, business, finance, and research and innovation, it highlights how organisations are adapting their models to deliver more equitable outcomes in practice.

PNG Fishing Industry Association: developing local models with small-scale fishers, that embrace traditional methods, to address traceability, finance and risks management challenges and increase their market access.

Fish Tales/Sea Tales: connecting consumers directly to small-scale fishers to ensure value is returned to the fishers.

Finance Earth: implementing innovative investment mechanisms that de-risk small scale fisheries.

WorldFish: leveraging research and innovation to reshape market systems with small-scale aquatic food producers and prioritise shared responsibility and joint decision-making.

From vulnerability to partnership

Across these examples, a clear pattern emerges - resilience is built when small-scale producers are recognised as essential partners in resilient value chains.  

This means:  

• Supporting evolving standards and processes that lower barriers to participation while maintaining integrity and credibility
• Investing in inclusive finance and market innovations that prioritise equity, producer livelihoods and environmental health
• Strengthening cross-sector collaboration to build equitable markets that enable fair value distribution, inclusive approaches and sustainable oceans

The seafood sector is at a turning point. Growing regulatory and public scrutiny, alongside increasing climate pressures, demand stronger approaches to risk management. By adopting more inclusive and equitable models, the sector can move beyond fragility and build long-term resilience, particularly for small-scale seafood producers.