Liberia has received equipment support from Japan that could enable artisanal fishermen in the West Africa country increase their catch, reduce the number of days they spend fishing, and minimize post-fishing losses.
Japan has signed an agreement with Liberia for the supply of 400 motorized Yamaha engines to benefit at least 2,000 artisanal fishermen in the Liberian counties of Montserrado, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Bassa, and Rivercess.
“The Liberian government reaffirms its commitment that the donation of the 400 motorized Yamaha engines will be used for the improvement of artisanal fishermen catch and subsequently phase out paddling canoes,” Director-General of Liberia’s National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority Emma Glassco said.
“Fishermen in the artisanal sector use underdeveloped fishing crafts that cannot allow them to fish long distances,” the authority said in the press release.
Lack of equipment and technical capacity to fish more productively remain major challenges for fishermen in Liberia. The new motorized engines are expected to boost ongoing efforts to modernize artisanal fishing along Liberia’s 570-kilometer coastline.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Liberia artisanal fishermen rely on small kru canoes that are preferred by the Kru and Popoh fishing communities “and propelled by paddle and sail.” Fishermen using the dug-out kru canoes “cannot operate in rough sea conditions,” according to the FAO.
In Liberia, where the bonga, sardine, and carangids are the major species caught by the artisanal fishermen, FAO says the fisheries sector is “still poorly developed.”
Inadequate or lack of capital for development of the fisheries sector and the “existence of many unstable dug-out canoes and use of inefficient fishing gear,” are some of the hurdles Liberia’s fisheries and aquaculture continues to grapple with, according to the FAO.
Liberia will distribute the motorized engines free of charge, but the beneficiaries must have been in possession of a fishing permit for the past five years through the local Co-Management Association (CMA) and the Liberia Artisanal Fishermen Association.
In addition, the fishers should be members of member of the CMA or local fishermen cooperative, be in possession of an insurance certificate from a state-approved insurance company and also have to make a commitment that all fish caught with support of new equipment must be sold to local fishmongers.
NaFAA will carry out monitoring of fishing outcomes of the equipment beneficiaries to determine how much fish was produced, the value of the fish capture and whether the fish was delivered to the local markets to stabilize fish demand and avert shortages.
By 2016, Liberia’s total annual fish output was estimated at 10,000 to 15,000 metric tons of fish – far below the country’s potential of 180,000 metric tons, according to USAID.
Photo courtesy of government of Liberia
