Some fishers at the New Takoradi fishing community have expressed concerns over the low catch after the closed season period.
They said after the reopening of the sea by the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, there had not been an improvement as they catch little to nothing when they go fishing.
Mr Francis Baidoo, the Chief fisherman in the area in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, said the closed season would be more beneficial if the sea was closed from August to September, instead of from July to August.
He said due to the cold weather condition in August, most of the fish are unable to move far into the sea, thereby making it easier for most coastal communities to access the fishes, which go a long way to boast their fishing business.
He stressed the need to reschedule the closed season month.
Mr Baidoo said getting supply of premix fuel was a big challenge to them as a result, they purchased petrol and diesel from fueling stations to aid their business, which he said usually affected them because it was purchased at a higher price.
Mr Edward Assifuah, a fisherman, pointed out that since fishing was the major occupation in the community, many of the fishermen found it hard to survive as they sat idle during the closed season.
He therefore appealed to the government to help them with alternative businesses during the period to make ends meet.
He said they were not getting any profit from the sale of premix fuel to enable them to undertake development projects in the community, therefore their area had nothing to boast of in terms of the profit accrued from the sale of premix.
Mr Assifuah expressed concern that the distribution of the premix fuel had been politicised and some specific fishermen received a fair share of the fuel as other fishermen did not receive at all.
He in that regard appealed to the government to pay special attention to coastal areas as they contributed to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country.
Mr Assifuah appealed to the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development to prioritise the needs of fishers.
GNA
JP/CAA/GRB
10 Sept. 2024
