Mrs Gladys DedeAdjetey, Chief Executive Officer, Obaduro Fisheries, has called on President Akufo-Addo to make the fishing industry the preserve of Ghanaians since foreigners are hijacking it by pushing locals to degrading fringes. “The fishing industry has supported and will continue to support women in the coastal communities. They rely on it for all what they count worthy in their lives. If we allow foreigners to take over the industry, the dignity of the coastal woman would be in tatters. Make an indigenized fishing industry one of your legacies for Ghanaians,” she said.
Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Tema, MrsAdjetey said fishing was not only a veritable source of employment but a tradition and culture that held the coastal communities together.
“From the fishermen who paddle their canoes at dawn in search of fish to fish processors engaged in full time smoking, drying and salt-drying, they all look up to a strong leader who knows what a strong local fishing industry can do to address the nagging issues of poverty and destitution in the coastal communities.”
According to her, the foreigners were repatriating huge sums of money to their home countries and were even shying away from their corporate social responsibilities.
Mrs Adjetey said there were well resourced Ghanaians who could command the heights of the industry if laws and regulations are crafted to suit them. She said the employment and human rights records of these foreign companies and peoples were appalling as they treated Ghanaian workers without dignity.
She appealed to the President to acquire a research fishing vessel to improve date collection, training and conception and implementation of viable policies that would aid the local fishing industry.She deplored illegal fishing practices saying that” if we kill fingerlings today, what fish will be available to catch in future” adding that “ a better common sense based anti- illegal fishing campaign should be crafted to halt the practice.”
