Analysis of Welfare Level of Coastal Communities Processing Salted Anchovy in Katialada Village, North Gorontalo

Salted anchovy processing is one of the economic activities of coastal communities in Katialada Village, North Gorontalo Regency, serving as a source of household income. This study aims to analyze the welfare level of coastal communities engaged in the salted anchovy processing business in Katialada Village, Kwandang Subdistrict, North Gorontalo Regency, based on eight indicators from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS): income, expenditure, housing condition, housing facilities, family health, access to health services, access to children's education, and access to transportation facilities. A descriptive quantitative method was used with a census sample of 26 anchovy processors. Data were collected in March–April 2026 through observation, interviews, and questionnaires, then analyzed descriptively using weighted scoring. The results show that the welfare level falls into the high category, with an average score of 2.85 (interval 2.41 to 3.10). The highest scores were found in the income and transportation access indicators (3.00 each), while the lowest score was found in the housing condition indicator (2.31). As additional context, a Spearman Rank correlation test showed a strong and significant relationship between the role of the salted anchovy processing business and welfare level (rho=0.627; sig.=0.001). These findings indicate that the salted anchovy processing business contributes substantially to meeting household basic needs, although improving housing conditions still requires attention in efforts to sustainably improve the welfare of coastal communities.