By Laudia Sawer
Tema, Aug. 10, GNA – The Canoe and Fishing Gear Owners Association of Ghana (CaFGOAG) has appealed to the National Premix Fuel Secretariat and the Ministry of Food and Aquaculture Development to ensure the availability of premix at the various landing beaches.
Nana Kweigyah, President of CaFGOAG, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview in Tema that many fishing communities had not received premix fuel since fishing resumed on August 1, after the expiration of this year’s close season.
Nana Kweigyah said the situation was bad in some communities that did not receive premix fuel several months before the closed season and were yet to receive it after the closed season.
“For the affected communities, canoes are still observing a closed season because they cannot afford the pump price of super and oil.”
He said the information reaching them was that the non-availability of the premix was due to a disruption in supply emanating from a faulty pump at the Tema Oil Refinery, which they understood had since been repaired.
He said authorities must come to the aid of the many fishing communities that had not received supply, adding that fishers need fuel to do fishing, and premix fuel was a critical input.
Touching on the cost of the premix fuel, he said that from 2014 until 2022, it was sold for GHS 7.30 per gallon, adding that it was however increased to GHc10.40 per gallon, reaching over GHS 20.00 per gallon as of the end of December last year.
The President of CaFGOAG said premix fuel was currently being sold at GHS 21.60 per gallon.
He said the communication around the increase in price of premix fuel was to fund the automation machines and improve supply since condensate was being considered for production instead of crude oil.
He noted that while the installation of the automation machines was ongoing in some selected landing beaches, the supply of premix had been erratic than before, leaving fishers in demanding situations, and therefore called on the sector to intervene.
GNA