Include Volta Region in 10 landing sites project - LPG

The Founder and leader of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), Mr Percival Kofi Akpaloo, has lauded government’s decision to invest in the fishing industry by establishing 10 fish landing sites in the country.

He, however, expressed the party’s displeasure at the decision to exclude the Volta Region from the list of the regions to benefit from the establishment of the 10 fish landing sites.

Speaking to the Daily Graphic, Mr Akpaloo said the exclusion of the Volta Region from the list of the beneficiary regions came out as a shock to the party, considering the impact the region has had in the fishing industry.

Background

Parliament has approved a commercial agreement between the Ghana Port and Harbours Authority (GPHA) and the China Harbour Engineering for the construction of 10 landing sites.

The sites are Axim and Dixcove in the Western Region, Elmina, Moree, Mumford, Winneba, Senya Beraku and Fete in the Central Region and Teshie and Ada in the Greater Accra Region.

The financing agreement for the project has been executed between the Ministry of Finance and China Development Bank (CDB) with the sod cutting ceremony expected to be done later in May this year.

Appeal

Reacting to the announcement, Mr Akpaloo said the move by the government deserved commendation because “the time is right for the fishing communities in the country to benefit from some of the government’s interventions”.

He said the establishment of the fish landing sites would go a long way to boost the activities of the fisherfolk and ultimately improve their well-being.

“When the party heard that 10 communities from three regions were going to benefit from the establishment of fish landing sites, the party was happy because the fishing communities in the country deserved to be helped to expand their operations,” he said.

Unfair for Volta Region

However, Mr Akpaloo said it was unfair for the Volta Region, one of the country’s biggest fish producing region, to be excluded from the lists of beneficiaries of the landing sites.

“This is because the Volta Region has over the past years contributed to the total fish production of Ghana. A region such as the Volta Region cannot be exempted when it comes to the role of fish production in the country,” he said.

Mr Akpaloo said the establishment of fish landing sites in the Volta Region would boost fish production in the region and also address challenges faced by the fishing communities in the region.