Fishermen and Queen Fishmongers Council – Ghana (Coastal and Inland) has launched a flagship programme aimed at improving access to affordable fishing inputs for artisanal fishers.
This move is a major shift from over reliance on the open market where critical fishing equipment is often scarce and exorbitantly priced.
At the launch in Anomabo in the Mfantseman Municipality, the Interim President of the Council, Nana Kwamena Sanka II disclosed that the Council would import fishing inputs including outboard motors directly to stabilise supply, enhance safety, and reduce production costs for fishers across the country.
Nana Sanka who is the Chief Fisherman of Anomabo, explained that high input costs had for years undermined their livelihoods, as well as compliance within the artisanal fishing sector.
As part of the programme, 15 “Yamaha Endura 15-horsepower” outboard motors were showcased for the participants to.
Nana Sankah, also President of Central Region Chief Fishermen and Queen Fishmongers Union, revealed that with support from the Government of Ghana through tax waivers and related assistance, the Council had secured arrangements to import some 5,000 outboard motors to be sold to artisanal fishers nationwide at moderate prices.
He expressed gratitude to the government for its support, urging fishers to reciprocate by obeying fisheries laws and investing savings from lower-cost inputs into community development initiatives such as education, sanitation, health services, and scholarships for children and wards of fishers.
He also announced plans to begin the sale of premix fuel in selected pilot fishing communities countrywide in collaboration with Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to reduce the frequent fuel shortages that disrupted fishing activities.
This initiative would be outside the current arrangement where government subsidised premix fuel is sold to fishermen.
Nana Sankah noted that while subsidies on fishing inputs had been a valuable social intervention, they were increasingly becoming a fiscal burden on governments globally and encouraged fishers to gradually reduce dependence on heavy subsidies.
The event brought together traditional leaders from all the eleven notable fishing regions in the country and fisher-leaders, with representation from the Republic of Togo.
Nana Sankah indicated that the Council plans to extend its activities to other West African coastal countries, starting with Togo, Benin, and Nigeria, noting that it was remarkable that a fisher from Togo participated in the launch.
Solidarity messages were delivered by the Central and Western Fishmongers Improvement Association (CEWEFIA) and Friends of the Nation (FoN), two of the most notable fishery-sector advocacy CSOs and NGOs.
Madam Josephine Opare-Addo, Programmes Officer of CEWEFIA, highlighted challenges faced by fish processors in accessing finance and explained that her organisation was contributing to addressing this through soft loans delivered via mobile phone technology to applicants.
Mr Philip Prah, Project Officer and GIS Specialist at FoN, presented the Alon Device, a solar-powered safety tool designed to enhance fisher safety and human security at sea.
Other institutions present included the Agricultural Development Bank and the Fisheries Commission of Ghana.
GNA
