Industrial fishing identified as cause of depletion

Aburi (E/R), May 17, GNA - Participants at a workshop on Tuesday at Aburi, have identified industrial fishing as the cause of the depletion of fish stocks in West Africa.

They also identified weaknesses in policy regulation and enforcement, lack of involvement of local fisher folk in the management of marine resources and the multiplicity of statutory bodies on fishing as other factors.

The workshop was on sustainable fisheries organised by the Friends of the Earth (FOE) Ghana, an NGO concerned with the conservation, restoration and rational use of the environment.

FOE's fisheries programme aims to promote the involvement of local fisher folk in resource management particularly at the policy level and to develop information sharing as well as promoting networking among stakeholders.

The workshop, which brought together representatives from Togo, Benin, Nigeria and Ghana, was aimed at creating a forum for a joint action towards the management of resources and to adopt a regional strategy towards resource protection.

The participants called for alternate sources of income for the fisher folk and community based programmes for the local people. There should be partial ban on trawling for a period and the establishment of a central tracking system to check on the activities of trawlers.

Mr. Felix Ahorlu of the FOE Togo said since available fish stocks are depreciating, other forms of fish farming should be exploited. He said that aquaculture and the importation of fish to meet national demand would ease pressure on marine resources.

Mr. Ahorlu called for a centralised department for to co-ordinate data on fisheries. Professor Austin Obiekeze, Director of the Institute of Oceanography of the University of Calabar in Nigeria, said the mangrove plantations along the West African coastline, which are spawning grounds for fishes should be protected.

He outlined environmental degradation, socio-economic development and regulations and enforcement as factors to be considered if fisheries should be sustained.

Prof. Obiekeze called for sub regional co-operation to check the activities of trawlers. Dr. Entsuah Mensah of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research urged NGOs to establish alternate sources of income for local fisher folk to avoid over exploitation of resources.

The introduction of industrial fishing has led to increased fishing in local waters, which has marginalised local fisher folk in terms of resource control, he said.