Elmina (C/R), July 14, GNA – Fishermen in Elmina, the biggest fishing hub in the Central region, have called on Government to stop the ‘close season’ policy and instead adopt a robust measure to halt the illegal trans-shipment of fish as known as “saiko” to sustain marine resources.
Saiko is usually carried out by foreign industrial trawlers in Ghana’s territorial waters.
According to the fishermen, even though closed season was helping towards the rebuilding the marine fish stock, deal with the issues of post-harvest losses and ensure a better way of processing and packaging fish for the market, yet it was not the panacea to solving the depleting marine endowments.
Consequently, the fishers have called on the government to devise more pragmatic bottom-up approach to effectively manage the fisheries sector rather than focusing on closed season.
The closed fishing season is intended to reduce over exploitation and to ensure fish stock replenishment in Ghana’s marine waters.
When the Ghana News Agency visited the shore of Elmina to assess the impact of the close season directive, the fishermen were seen using the opportunity to mend their nets, service and pack their outboard motors in a safe place and repair their canoes to put them in good shape.
Egya Kobina Esuon, a 28-year-old fisherman, said the practice where artisanal fishers buy the unwanted by-catch of industrial vessels had developed into a lucrative business.
He said the industrial trawlers not only target the demersal (bottom-dwelling) species for which they were licensed, but the same species as the artisanal fishing community, including the severely depleted small pelagic such as sardinella and mackerel.
This, according to him, often contained heavy juvenile fish which are later landed by the ‘saiko’ canoes for onward sale to local markets with severe implications for Ghana’s artisanal fishing sector.
The phenomenon remains critical to national food security as it significantly denied artisanal fishers their due catch.
Expressing further frustrations, Mr Thomas Abban Amfoh, a 50-year-old fisherman said “the government could continue with ‘close season’ for decades, yet the “sea galamssey” will not end because foreign fishing vessels have taken over Ghana’s marine waters with impunity.”
“We don’t accept close season because it is not the solution to our depleted marine endowment but just to further impoverish the poor fisherman and his family,” he noted.
Mending his net under a shed near the Benya lagoon in Elmina, Mr Kofi Mbro, a fisher in his 20s. said the growing economic hardship, expensive fishing logistics and mounting interest on loans were some factors impeding their work.
He complained about their inability to pay back their loans, driving many into serious financial troubles with their banks, and appealed to government, saying, “they should just open the sea for us to work.”
Other fishermen pledged to conduct themselves well within the dictates of the directives to ensure its success but implored the government to appreciate the importance of streamlining efforts that would effectively curtail the illegal activities of pair trawlers and foreign vessels as well as IUU fishing practices after the closed season.
They called for an alternative livelihood programme that would help sustain their livelihood within the closed season period and ensure enough publicity about the definite time for the season so they could adequately prepare for it.
This, they explained, would help the attempt of ensuring that the depleted fish stock was restored to benefit the people of the country.
GNA