Fisherfolks in Winneba have harvested bountifully after the government of Ghana lifted the ban on fishing.
According to the Member of Parliament for Efutu, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, the one month closure of the sea made no sense to doubters.
“But today, the bumper harvest by Fishermen in Effutu has proven that the decision to close the sea was only meant to help our fishermen nationwide,” he stated in a post on his Facebook Timeline.
The Fisheries ministry and Fisheries Commission officially opened the sea for artisanal and inshore fishing activities which started on Sunday, June 16, 2019.
At the opening, the sector minister, Madam Elizabeth Afoley Quaye, entreated the fishing communities to desist from illegal light fishing.
She warned that the perpetrators will be severely dealt with.
“The onus is on all and sundry to safeguard the fisheries sector for posterity. We need to belaw abiding to avoid all forms of illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing. The ban is being lifted but the laws prohibiting light fishing and use of obnoxious chemicals and unorthodox methods of fishing are still in force,” she stated.
The closed season was in accordance with sections 76 (3) and 84 of the Fisheries Act 2002 (Act 625) which aims at helping to reduce excessive pressure and overexploitation of fish stock.
