The Bassan people occupation was/is fishing with different fishing equipments, farming, canoe carving, native salt preparation and palm cutting. With these products, they traded by barter. In early times, they bought slaves with native salts which was in high demand  in the Western Delta in the lands of the Urhobos, Itshekiri, Isoko and Benin. The native salt is prepared from the roots and fruits  of the mangrove tree with special technique. As the works is very tedious, it made the Bassan to look for other extra hands (men/women) to provide extra labour for the preparation.

Since the Bassan’s also settled around the rain forest area which produce luzerant huge trees which gave rise to preparation of dugged out canoes from these timbers. The canoes were one of the most important means of communication in those days in the area. The bigger canoes were highly demanded in Akassa, Brass new Calaber ports, Bonney, Opobo where there were used as super cargo boats (trading along the areas). There were also used for war canoes (fighting) and as gigs by the Chiefs.

The Bassan people  is among the three other clans in the nation that have special technique  in fishing devoid of other Ijaw clans. There uses large traps and cains and large mats propend from the leaves of raffia tree. There use these trap and the mats to block creks and use ripe raffia fruits paste to poison the other and of the creeks at the middle air tide. The fishes run down stream into the traps and get caught while those that goes against the tide dies.

In farming, there produce cassava, plantain, sugar cane, cocoyam, maize for local consumption.