Fishing is world’s most dangerous occupation, says global survey
A global safety charity is calling for urgent change and investment after its latest report named fishing as the world’s most dangerous occupation.
A quarter of fishers (26 per cent) have been harmed on the job in the last two years, according to Lloyd’s Register Foundation’s latest World Risk Poll report (Engineering safer workplaces: Global trends in occupational safety and health). Yet, data from the report shows that more than nearly three quarters (73 per cent) have never received any safety training. The figure makes fishing one of the industries with the lowest rates of training in the world.
The data was gathered by global analytics firm Gallup, which conducted 147,000 interviews in 142 countries and territories around the world, and offers one potential explanation for the worrying figures. Like other ‘riskier’ industries, such as construction and mining, fishing skews heavily towards demographics that were found to be more at risk of harm regardless of their occupation, such as those in more precarious financial situations.
For instance, 15 per cent of the fishing workforce declared they could only cover their basic needs for less than a week if they lost all income. This demographic, globally, was found to be more vulnerable to workplace harm than average – a third (34 per cent) of them experienced it in the past two years (well above the global average of 18 per cent). Training rates also relate to financial resilience; globally, less than a quarter (23 per cent) of those who said they could only cover their basic needs for less than a week have received safety training, below the global average of 38 per cent.
The World Risk Poll is the first (and only) global, representative study of worry about, and harm from, risks to people’s safety. It’s conducted every two years, and these data are based on 147,000 interviews conducted by Gallup in 142 countries and territories throughout 2023. The poll covers places where little to no official data on safety and risks exist. It measures 120 of the same countries surveyed in the previous poll in 2021. In 2024, the issues covered include severe weather and climate change resilience, workplace safety, and waste management.
Several organisations are striving to tackle the issues around fishing. Among them is the International Fund for Fishing Safety, a Lloyd’s Register Foundation initiative managed by The Seafarers’ Charity, in partnership with the FISH Platform. The fund aims to financially support the delivery of fishing safety projects around the world and so far, £200,000 worth of grants have been awarded, supporting 65,000 fishers worldwide – but the fund’s partners say much more is needed.
“Fishing’s reputation as a dangerous occupation is well-known – but sufficient mitigative actions are obviously well overdue,” says Dr Daryl Attwood, project director at Lloyd’s Register Foundation.
“International regulations provide an important framework for countries and businesses, but these can only go so far, especially for fishers in low-income countries who may believe their only option is to ‘fish today’, regardless of safety. Providing regular, tailored training, along with basic safety equipment, must be near the top of agendas everywhere.
“The work of the International Fund for Fishing Safety in supporting local safety projects around the world is crucial – but it’s just a start. All fishing industry participants, including banks and other direct and supporting institutions, need to provide more funds to finance fishing safety interventions. We’d like to encourage them to talk to us about how these funds can be mobilised.”
Alan McCulla, coordinator at the International Fund for Fishing Safety, agrees. “By providing better training, access to safety equipment and auditing for safer vessels, the International Fund for Fishing Safety aims to reduce accidents, prevent near misses, and save lives. But there’s also a broader benefit to the whole marine ecosystem.
“Improved safety practices underpinned by existing international safety standards empower fishers to move from survival mode – where overfishing potentially means minimising time spent at sea – to long-term sustainability, ensuring the livelihoods of the local communities for generations to come.”
He adds: “In the end, fisher safety is not a competing priority with sustainable fishing; it is essential to it.”
Lloyd’s Register Foundation is also working with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to encourage and facilitate the supply of insurance to fishers using small vessels, primarily in less wealthy regions. As well as supporting the development of safety guidelines in pilot countries across Latin America, Africa, and Asia, the programme aims to raise awareness of guidelines, safety and vessel inspection methods, and fast-track access to fishing vessel insurance services.
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