Artisanal fishermen call for stricter punishment for 'Saiko' fishers

Small-scale fishermen and fish processors in the Central Region say recalcitrant fishers who use light, explosives and chemicals for harvesting should receive severe sanctions.

They also want an illegal fishing practice known as 'Saiko, which targets fish species meant for artisanal fishermen, to end.

The artisanal fishers in the Central Region outlined their official position in a 10-point communiqué presented to the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development.

Fishermen and fish processors in a meeting at the Fisheries Ministry

They want these key points to be included in the 2002 Fisheries Act which is currently under review.

Ghana's fishing industry is under threat as the fish stock is said to have depleted significantly. The decline has been blamed on illicit fishing activities such as the use of light and dynamite to harvest and the use of monofilament net which traps fingerlings.

There has also been widespread condemnation for the 'Saiko' practice where trawlers stay put on the sea, catch fish meant for small-scale fishers and then sell them to canoes fishermen out at sea.

Experts say if such unsustainable fishing practices continue, the country could be out of fish in the next decade.

The leadership of GNCFC and NAFPTA presenting their communique

The  Central Region fisherfolk, who want to have a voice in the fisheries law reforms, recommend that the current law prohibiting 'Saiko' should be strictly enforced.

They also want government to start implementing the fisheries co-management policy, which empowers locals in fishing communities to enforce regulations at the local level.

According to implementers of the 'Far Dwuma Nkɔdo' project, about 464 fishers from all 45 coastal communities in the Central Region came together to draft the document which was presented to the ministry by the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council, (GNCFC) and the National Fish Processors and Traders Association, (NAFPTA).

The consultations were facilitated under Far Dwuma Nkɔdo project being implemented by the Environmental Justice Foundation, (EJF) and Hen Mpoano with the financial support from the European Union and German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Fishes harvested using explosives are often bloody

Ghana’s fishing communities are becoming increasingly vulnerable as the fisheries crisis deepens.

The average annual income per traditional fishing canoe has dropped by as much as 40 percent in the last 10 to 15 years, and landings of small pelagic fish – key for local consumption –are at their .