Un métier en transformation, mais encore significatif dans la ruralité côtière québécoise : le cas de la pêche et de sa relève en Gaspésie

Abstract

In rural coastal regions, such as Gaspésie and North Shore (Côte-Nord), fisheries play a fundamental role from a social and economic point of view. The case of fisheries seems interesting to us because of the proximity between the fisher (captain owner), the family, the territory and its community. Unlike other types of sectors in natural resources, the captain-owner of Quebec is a small family-type entrepreneur who is himself strongly rooted in a territorial community. Due to this proximity, the entrepreneurial dynamics (including those of the entrepreneurial transfer) are strongly connected to those of the community and the family. After presenting census data on the evolution of the sector (catch volumes and labor market) through the results of qualitative research through with 2 focus groups with experts of the sector and 85 interviews with fishers and their families, we will observe how and through which social mechanisms the family, the local community and the professional community can contribute to shaping the professional and entrepreneurial trajectory of the captain-owner, and more specifically the phenomenon of entrepreneurial transfer and its succession. In our opinion, the entrepreneurial transfer has a central role for the sustainability of businesses in a key sector of this region. In this context, the sustainability of this profession and these firms becomes essential for the social and economic vitality of the Gaspésie region, which is experiencing important demographic, social and economic challenges.