Fishermen happy with good season

Sardinella (herrings and mackerel) landings at the major fishing sites in the country indicate a very good harvest, which experts believe may be the best in four years.

Reports from 12 major sites in the Western, Central and Greater Accra regions, including Elmina, Axim, Apam, Sekondi and Kormantse, are very encouraging with better quality and larger herrings, top officials of the Fisheries Directorate confirmed last week. Fishermen who use ring nets "watsa nets" at Axim now run shifts so that they can better manage their catch and have enough time for processing. The officials attributed the good catch to the adherence to the ban on the use of dynamites to fish and the prolonged cold weather. Mr George Y. Anyane, Director, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that the use of dynamite, which destroys fish stock, had a dwindling effect on landings, but effective control measures to stem negative practices have started paying off.

Statistics from the Directorate indicate that, canoe landings of sardinella had fallen from 81,951 metric tonnes in 1995 to 63,576 metric tonnes in 1997. Production levels, however, appreciated to 72,080 tonnes in 1998 following the enforcement of the ban. Statistics for 1999 were not readily available, but research indicates a further rise in production, adding that the season lasted up to October in the Central and Western Regions. Explaining the effect of the cold weather, Mr Anyane said it promotes upwelling, "a rising cold nutrient-rich coastal ocean current that attracts fish".

Mrs Patricia Markwei, an Assistant Director, who has toured major fishing communities compiling statistics of the landings, said: "I believe this would be the best season in four years. The quality is good because they do not get rotten like when dynamites were used and we have very large sizes". Before the season started in mid June, herrings were imported with a carton selling at about 75,000 cedis at the cold store, while mackerel was 95,000 cedis. At present, the price of a carton ranges from 15,000 cedis to 50,000 cedis at the beaches depending on the size and how heavy the catch is for the day.