REMARKS BY THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE,
HON. ROBERT M. PERSAUD, MBA, MP ON
THE OCCASION OF FISHERMAN’S DAY 2007
I feel honoured to celebrate with you my first Fisherman’s Day as the Minister of Agriculture who has responsibility for the Fisheries Sector. This year’s global theme is ‘Fishing Rights. But we have modified it to reflect a local priority – security of our fishermen.
The rights of our fishermen are seriously guarded by this Government. Our policies and programmes have constantly expanded these within the national thrust of sustainable exploitation of our fishery resources.
We have not made interventions alone as a Government. The Ministry and the fishing community have developed a strong working partnership in enhancing and expanding these rights as we seek to deepen our collaborative approach to fisheries growth.
Over the years, Fisheries contribution to the national economy has been tangible. The sector has been important to the livelihood of thousands of persons by providing employment, fostering direct and indirect economic activities in other related industries.
The demand for fish and fish products has increased in Guyana due to healthier life styles. You our fishers have helped to meet that need by providing fresh and wholesome products to the various communities.
In 2006, 20,000 metric tons of fishery resources landed even as we continue to receive reports of illegal fishing in our waters. These 20,000 metric tonnes reflect only species being caught in the shallow waters of the EEZ.
Globally, there is much concern about depletion of fish stocks. Recently, the US revealed that some species were overfished. Consequently, we can expect greater interest in our fishing resources. This has both positive and negative effects
Assessments of our commercially important species are continuing. During next month, two of our staff will be participating in a training workshop along with their Caribbean counterparts on these assessments, which will be useful in providing management strategies for the fishing industry.
Over the years, it has been observed that our shrimp resources has been over fished and measures are being put in place to reduce the fishing pressure on the resources. The trawlers’ association has been assisting with a self imposed “closed season” during the month of September and October each year for six weeks. However, this has been hampered by illegal fishing activities by vessels from outside of Guyana, hence the emphasis on securing the Fishing Industry in Guyana.
The demand for fresh fish on ice in the Caribbean, Venezuela and United States of America has seen a significant increase of these products. Last year, exports totaled more than $11 billion with concerns about dwindling fish stocks. Countries in North American and Europe are presenting more marketing opportunities especially for aquaculture products.
We however need institutional arrangements in place to manage and lead the fisheries sector to maximize on these opportunities. During the past several months, we have started to effect changes and improvements in the management of the fisheries sector
The Fisheries Advisory Committee (FAC) was reactivated. It is now functioning well. Various sub-committees are working to improve the quality of service by our fisheries department. Also, the committee is examining some very important strategic issues for the sector.
The licensing process has been reformed to improve transparency and efficiency. Complaints and allegations about the licensing process are being taken seriously. Just one week ago, I approved a new licensing procedure as recommended by the FAC. This has gone into immediate effect.
The drafting of the five-year Fisheries Management Plan has just been completed. The Ministry will commence implementation of this plan once approved by the Cabinet, shortly. This document is comprehensive as there is a specific plan for each of the fisheries sub-sector.
The Ministry has been giving attention to the number and quality of personnel in Fisheries department. More extension officers are being recruited while the performance of existing officers is being closely monitored.
During this year, the Fisheries Department was relocated to the Ministry’s head office to ensure greater attention and support. This has already led to better coordination and efficient operation.
Additionally, in the area of institutional development, the transformation of the department into a semi-autonomous agency of commission is being studied.
Notwithstanding the limited capacity, we have been able to attain some successes since our last Fisherman’s Day.
In April, the Arapaima Management Plan was also launched in the North Rupununi. The implementation of this model of sustainable utilisation of an endangered fish species is being studied closely for further national and international application.
We are building a mechanism to reduce conflicts among artisan fishers and trawler operators. Consultations have been initiated to resolve this matter through better zoning of the Fisheries resources.
Guyana has retained its certification to export fish and fish products to the USA through our compliance with the use of Turtle Exclusion Devices.
We also have been able to provide various forms of support to several cooperatives and groups of fishermen. This we will continue to do as we move towards the implementation of our Management Plan and support what some refer to as the `blue revolution’ - development of our marine fishery resources.
I wish to highlight two areas which will be given priority in the context of our national competitiveness strategy – exploitation of the pelagic and development of a thriving aquaculture industry.
Guyana has an estimated area of 138,240 square kilometers of Maritime space and there are other fishery resources that have not been tapped. These include our coastal pelagic and large pelagic – tuna, dolphin, wahoos and king mackerel.
It is estimated that revenues from the resources in the deep sea will be tripled if utilized in a proper manner, since the products from these resources are high priced and in big demand.
Government has received a number of local and foreign applications to harvest these resources. A number of regulations will be put in place before any harvesting. These regulations would be in keeping with international fishery conventions.
The response to our aquaculture sector has been positive.
The freshwater aquaculture station continues to conduct research, provide training to farmers and produce fingerlings for production.
A fingerling hatchery will soon be constructed at Mon Repos to provide support to this new sub-sector.
Aquaculture growth in Guyana has been quite consistent and wide cross sections of the population have shown interest in fish rearing. A FAO consultant is working on aquaculture in flood fallow cane fields.
The Ministry with other agencies is providing much support to the newly formed National Aquaculture Association of Guyana.
The draft Aquaculture Bill is being reviewed for presentation to the National Assembly which is essential for any new sector.
Already, Guyana has received interest from several investors in the field of aquaculture and I do hope that our private sector will see the tremendous opportunities in this area.
Let me return to the issue of security of our fisher folks.
For decades, the livelihood and safety of our legitimate fishers are threatened by pirates and hijackers. They deprive our fisher folks of not only engines, vessels and catches at sea, but commit the most indescribable acts of physical attacks with seeming impunity.
The government has strongly condemned this criminal occurrence and has implored the security forces to take necessary action. But our fisher folks cry out for more effective action from the law enforcement agencies. Our fishermen demand and do deserve tougher and more effective action which my Ministry fully supports.
While this matter is one of security and falls outside the purview of my Ministry, we have still been looking at ways of dealing with this serious threat to the fishing sector.
There have been a number of inter-agency meetings among the Ministries of Agriculture and Home Affairs, the Guyana Police Force, the Coast Guard and the fishermen bodies. These meetings were both at the Ministerial and technical levels. A number of initiatives have been discussed.
On the legislative side, the Attorney General Chambers have been directed through Cabinet to make piracy a non-bailable offence. Why should someone who commits an act tantamount to attempted murder be treated like a petty thief?
Fishermen would complain about the slow response by the Police and Coast Guard to incidents of piracy. To help address the constraint of mobility, my Ministry has built two vessels with engines to assist in law enforcement patrols. These will be handed over to the fishermen cooperatives in Berbice and Essequibo for coordination with the respective police divisions.
Our Fisheries Department has also been working along with insurance companies and hire-purchase firms to explore the best arrangement to replace stolen engines and other supplies. This is still work in progress.
To protect our fishing resources from being pilfered by unregistered vessels, we will continue to work along with the Guyana Coast Guard and Police to develop an enhanced Action Plan for the surveillance of the fishery resources. Recently, we applied to be a part of a pilot project from France for a Vessel Monitoring System which will provide increase monitoring and security for our fishermen as they conduct their livelihood.
We recognized the importance of security to our fishermen and the viability of the industry; hence this forum focuses on security.
Your support and cooperation in these and other initiatives is critical for us to combat piracy and hijacking against our fisher folks.
While Fisherman’s Day activities are being celebrated under the theme “Fishing Rights,” we must recognize that with these rights come responsibilities. It is your responsibility to harvest the various resources in a sustainable manner. These responsibilities may include using Turtle Excluder Devices where necessary or the right size of seine and hook so as not to fish the recruitment stock for the next fishing season. In order to safeguard your rights, we must take the necessary steps to achieve sustainable production and prevent over exploitation of our resources.
In conclusion, I wish to salute our fishermen and all those who work and support the fishing sector. Your hard work, dedication and commitment to this sector are admirable. Together, I am sure we can expand and develop a fishing sector that will not only continue to satisfy the local protein needs but also expand markets and opportunities for all our fisher folks.
Happy Fisherman’s Day 2007!
Thank you.
