It is important for artisanal fishers to observe closed season -Yamoah

Mr Kyei Kwadwo Yamoah, the Convenor for the Fisheries Alliance, a civil society organisation on fishing, says it is important for artisanal fishermen to observe the closed fishing season.Mr Yamoah said artisanal fishermen accounted for over 70 per cent of the country's small pelagic fish, which the closed season aims to protect.He said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on issues surrounding the 2024 closed season, which commenced on Monday, July 1.The Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture performed the official ceremony to kick off the nationwide closed season at Upper Dixcove, in the Ahanta West Municipality.Implementation of the closed season started in 2019 as part of measures to curb the depletion of Ghana's fish stock and allow fish to spawn.The two-month closed period for industrial fishermen and the one-moth season for artisanal fishermen is backed by Section 84 of the Fisheries Act, 2002 (Act 625) which empowers the Ministry and the Fisheries Commission to declare a closed fish ing season as a measure to ensure that fish spawn at least once in their lifetime before being caught by fishers.Mr Yamoah said the closed season was a very important management measure and must ensure that to protect the fish stock, all fishers take part in the closed season for its intended objective to be achieved.'We encourage all fishers to comply to ensure that the fish stock is replenished; it is important that we can as a nation achieve fish recovery in the fishing sector, and it is good that the government and stakeholders are collaborating in implementing the closed season,' he stated.The Fisheries Alliance convenor said that in addition to the closed season, it was also good that a moratorium is in place through the fisheries management policy 2022-2026, which is expected to be implemented across board, canoe, semi-industrial, and industrial.He added that even though there was a new gear directive for industrial and semi-industrial fishers, it was important that Ghana moved to the next stag e.'It is not okay to be talking to fishermen and advising them not to engage in illegal fishing after the closed season. What is important is for us to put in place the necessary mechanisms to ensure that there is an effective deterrent during this period, during the closed season, and after the season is opened,' he stressed.He said an effective deterrent would ensure voluntary compliance and prevent illegal fishing.Mr Yamoah said it was very important that as authorities engage fishers to support and buy into the closed season, they also put in place a mechanism that would convince the fishers that Ghana as a nation is serious and wants to tackle illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing.He said that fortunately for the sector, the structures already existed, made up of the fisheries enforcement unit, marine police, and community volunteers, but there was a need to facilitate the process, provide the resources, and ensure that Ghana's sustainable plan was well communicated to fishers.Mr Y amoah emphasised that 'we must look at providing effective deterrents for IUU fishing; without that, we will not maximise the benefits of our closed season and we will not realise the benefits of other fisheries management policies we have put in place. This is an important element that we can never leave out in addressing IUU.'Source: Ghana News Agency