Aquaculture development in rural atomistic societies

Abstract

For technological innovations to succeed in alleviating problems of rural underdevelopment they must be appropriate to the sociocultural context in which they are to be developed. Technical and economic feasibility alone is not enough. Atomistic rural societies--which are societies lacking in suprahousehold organizational entities--are the most common societal type found in the impoverished rural regions of the less developed countries. Development efforts in such societies and especially those where shortage of food is an acute problem, should aim first at intensification and regularization of domestic food production by increasing the productivity of households. When considering aquaculture development, family-operated, housesite, subsistence-oriented ponds, which employ rudimentary technology, would seem an appropriate innovation in atomistic communities. The author's field experience in an atomistic community in rural Mexico provides perspectives for the discussion.