By Mildred Siabi-Mensah
Takoradi, Sept. 24, GNA – Stakeholders in the Fishing Industry have deliberated on the crucial need to safeguard landing beaches across the country to avoid future incursion and threats.
Currently, activities of private developers, especially the promoters of tourism, sea defence project and climatic conditions, were eroding many beachfronts in the country and this could soon affect safe landing sites for the fishing industry.
The workshop dubbed: ‘Western Regional Workshop on Fish Landing Site Mapping and Documentation under the Sustainable Oceans Project’, would help build grassroot capacity for a sustainable ocean economy.
The three-year Project is being implemented by the Environmental Justice Foundation and Hen Mpoano (Our Beach) with funding from the Norwegian Agency for Development Corporation.
Mr Justice Camillus Mensah, Project Manager at Hen Mpoano, who presented on ‘Fishing Landing Sites Documentation Strategy’ said the project would build on existing activities and add four new sites for documentation.
He said there would also be the facilitation of a national dialogue on climate change, improved spatial and land use activities to protect all sites and livelihoods of the over 140,000 population in that sector.
Mr Nyantakyi Osei-Akoto from the Environmental Justice Foundation said the overall goal of the project was to achieve a resilient sector built on inclusiveness from all stakeholders.
The project, he noted, would build capacity of the Security agencies, regulatory authorities, media, and women, among other players, for better understanding and support while improving land tenure governance for a Sustainable seafood systems
Mr Stephen Kankam, the Deputy Director of Hen Mpoano, said the organization had been working with fishers for the past 10 years to identify best practices for fisheries management.
“We are also working with others like government and Land use planning authorities on site registration and management,” he added.
Mr. Kankam said fishing activities, including, buying, processing and transportation should ideally happen around the shore.
“If it’s going to be a viable business, fishing activities that involve processing of fish, handling of fish, Transportation should happen within close proximity to the shore.”
He said variety of factors, including climate change, human activities and development actions within the shore were hampering the effective activities of fishers coupled with more and more coastal erosion.
The Deputy Director noted that reversing the current trend thus called for multifaceted approach by all concerned institutions, particularly the traditional authorities to safeguard the landing beaches for now and posterity.
GNA