Small Scale Fishers (SFF) want the law enforced on the total allowable catch per species by each skipper to enable them to also sustain themselves.
In an interview with Nampa on Thursday, the Director of Hanganeni Artisanal Fishing Association (HAFA), a local association based in Henties Bay, Herman /Honeb noted that the recent increased number of skip boats at sea is directly affecting the existence of small-scale farmers, especially at the coastal towns of Namibia.
/Honeb, who was speaking on the sidelines of the discussions of the validation of Namibia’s Action Plan on small-scale fisheries in Swakopmund, said that the fish is depleting at an alarming rate.
“Some skip boat owners are operating under the pretext of being small scale fishers, while the genuine small-scale fishers are feeling these effects because there is not enough fish for them as before.
Additionally, the more accessible and oversupplied this fish is on the market, the lower we the small-scale fishers will charge as the value has gone down. This is how these small-scale fishers sustain themselves,’ he said.
Fishers catch species such as kabeljou, galjoen, sea catfish and steenbrass among others and there is currently a limit of 10 fish per/fisher per/day for marine fishers.
“We understand that the government is trying to assist everyone, but if so, many skip boat licenses are issued. It should prepare its capacity with regards to law enforcement to monitor and take care of all these skip boat operators,” he stressed.
Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Derek Klazen, while launching the action plan, expressed concern with the depletion of the line fish, specifically the kabeljou, noting that a plan of action will be established to deal with the matter.
“I have seen some videos of skip boats catching hundreds of the kabeljou when they come for spawning, seemingly without a care for the resources and just to make money. We need to pull our resources together to preserve this fish and one day we will come up with regulations and policies to look into these matters,” the minister noted.
Source: The Namibia Press Agency
