Fisheries Commission and FEU call for logistics to improve efficiency

The Western Regional Director of the Fisheries Commission, Mr Godfred Tsibu-Baidoo says the Commission and the Western regional Command of the Fisheries Enforcement Unit (FEU) were woefully equipped to clamp down illegalities on the country's waters.

He noted that the command lacked men and logistics to adequately check the many illegal practices at sea.

Though Mr Tsibu-Baidoo denied that the situation was "hopeless", he admitted that the fight against illegal, unregulated and unreported practices were far from being won.

He was speaking to journalists in an interaction session as part of a field visit to the Fisheries Commission in Takoradi.

EU Training

The field trip which also took the journalists to Saltpond Ankaful in the Central region and Axim also in the Western region, formed part of a training workshop organised by the European Union for 15 selected journalists to create awareness of EU projects and support to the country.

The trip was one of two field trips organised to give journalists the opportunity to assess projects being undertaken with support from the EU and to have practical use of the mobile journalism lessons learnt.

The projects include the Far Dwuma Nkodo and the Far Ban Bo projects aimed among others at sustaining fishery livelihoods in beneficiary communities and working to reduce IUU practices in fishing communities.

Mr Tsibu-Baidoo said if there is no systematic and conscious efforts at providing adequate logistics, the illegalities would continue and the fishing communities would continue to remain poor.

He noted that the two Commands protecting the fisheries were inadequate.

"Our coastline is to long to be controlled by only two commands", he stated and called for a command or two to help to protect the activities at sea.

He said the Commission and allied FEU were poised to work but noted that logistics must be provided.

Political Interference

He also alluded to the fact that there was a lot of political interference in the efforts at curbing the illegalities at sea and called on all offenders and politicians to let the law deal with them.

Inspector Leo Azasoo of the FEU advised artisanal fishermen to voluntarily comply with the fishery laws and avoid all forms of illegal practices at sea to avoid being caught.

Axim

At Axim, the General Secretary of the Western Region chapter of the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council, Mr Michael Abakah-Edu said the fisheries had been overly politicised and called for conscious efforts to help replete fishery stocks.