The Minister for fisheries and Aquaculture Development Mrs. Hawa Koomson has assured fisherfolks that gains made from the observance of the closed season are not eroded by activities of illegal fishing.
Mrs. Koomson added that her ministry will empower the fisheries enforcement unit to arrest and prosecute anybody involved in illegal fishing.
The Minister made these remarks when she addressed fisherfolks at the 2022 closed season National Consultative meeting in Accra.
The 2022 fishing closed season as announced by the minister would commence from July 1, 2022, to August 1, 2022, for artisanal and semi-industry fleet and July 1, 2022, to August 31, 2022, for industrial trawlers.
The Minister made mentioned that the closed season for 2022 is a strategy to restore fish sticks and to deliberate on how to build on the gains made from the implementation of the closed season.
“I am certain that the takeaways from the discussions would further deepen the thinking and stimulate the commitments towards the annual closed fishing seasons,” she stated.
According to Mrs. Koomson, a report made from the 2021 closed season revealed that fishers have accepted the closed season and are willing to continue to observe the seasonally closed seasons.
She lamented that there were higher fish catches for both artisanal and semi-industrial fleets after the closed season in 2019 and 2021 than in 2020 when there was no closed season.
This she said, the continuous implementation of the closed season and the increase in the duration could have a more positive result on fish catches.
Source: Rebecca Kajelo/mydailynewsonline.com
