An Executive Member of the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council in the Western Region, Mike Abakah Aidoo, has said the 3-year moratorium on new entrants of canoes in the marine sector initiated by the Ministry of Fisheries is a laudable idea.
Mr. Mike Abakah Aidoo in an interview on Plan B FM afternoon show EBAANOSEN, hosted by Ohene, stated that the ban on new entrants of canoes is enshrined in the statutes of the Fisheries ACT, which is one of the measures to regulate the canoes on the country’s waters.
” By our Fisheries Act, the government must provide a management plan regarding the work of the fishers. One of the key measures in the management plan has to do with the moratorium which seeks to improve the decline of marine species in the sea as well as the registration of canoes.”
He stressed that it is a sustainable measure agreed upon by the council to manage the marine waters because many canoes on the sea are causing the extinction of some species in the waters.
Mr. Aidoo said an awareness would be carried out in various fishing communities to help the fisherfolk understand the moratorium better.
He added that currently, the fisher folks are lamenting low catch after the last closed season, and expressed optimism of recording a bumper harvest shortly.
According to the sector minister, Hawa Koomson, the move is part of measures to address the issue of dwindling fish stock in the country.
The policy means that no new canoe will be allowed in the fisheries sector for three years.
The moratorium began yesterday October 1, 2023.
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