Fishermen need insurance policy – Chief Fisherman

Nii Odametey II, Tema-Awudum Chief Fisherman, has appealed to insurance companies to formulate insurance policies to cover activities of fishermen. He told the GNA in an interview that there was no known insurance policy for fishermen. He was reacting to the intended facilitation and implementation of the Fishermen Life Insurance Scheme by the Ministry of Fisheries.

The government announced in the 2014 budget that the Ministry of Fisheries would facilitate the implementation of the Fishermen Life Insurance Scheme in 2014. The scheme is to transfer the risk of liability resulting from the payment of compensation in the event of accidents in the coastal and lake fishing communities to the private sector.

The budget envisaged that “about 200,000 fishermen would have an insurance cover over life, canoes, outboard motors and fishing net at the end of the year”.

Nii Odametey said even though the State Insurance Company (SIC) used to insure fishermen, the company stopped that policy and that the need for such an insurance scheme for fishermen was long overdue as many things, including accidents, happen at sea.

According to the Chief Fisherman, incidents such as canoe wrecks due to high tidal waves occur, noting that such wrecks could lead to their nets being entangled in sand and rocks in the sea. He commended the government for the provision of a life insurance scheme for fishermen in the budget.

Nii Odametey however, appealed to government to ensure that such promises in the budget are implemented to the benefit of the fishermen and their dependants. On the removal of taxes imposed on outboard motors and other imported agricultural materials, he asked for the availability of the motors.

He said out of the about 600 canoes operating at the Tema Canoe Beach, about 400 of them needed new outboard motors. According to him, due to this, fishermen either collaborate with other fishermen to fish, rent or manage their old outboard motors.