The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, in collaboration with the Fisheries Commission, has distributed relief items to fisherfolk and fish processors in the Volta Region to support them during the 2022 closed fishing season.
The items included 2,620 bags of rice, 2,052 cartons of cooking oil, 426 bundles of wire mesh, 132 chest freezers and 1,308 basins for distribution to fishers and fish processors across the region.
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The 2022 relief package represented a significant increase compared with the previous year, when beneficiaries received 1,220 bags of rice, 180 cartons of cooking oil and 30 approved fishing nets distributed across 48 fish landing beaches in the region’s three coastal districts.
Deputy Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Mr Moses Anim, who presented the items at Keta, said the gesture demonstrated the government’s commitment to improving the welfare of fishing communities and supporting livelihoods during the annual fishing ban.
He urged fishers to comply fully with the closed season directive, stressing that the measure was necessary to protect the country’s fisheries resources by allowing fish stocks sufficient time to reproduce and replenish.
Mr Anim noted that the long-term sustainability of Ghana’s fishing industry depended on the collective efforts of fishers to prevent overexploitation of marine resources.
Speaking on behalf of beneficiaries, Madam Ruby Adukpo of the Volta Regional Chapter of the National Fish Processors and Traders Association expressed appreciation to the government, saying the items would provide much-needed support to fishers and processors during the temporary suspension of fishing activities.
The 2022 closed fishing season for artisanal and semi-industrial fishers ran from July 1 to July 31, while industrial trawlers were required to observe the closure until August 31.
