By Petronella Sibeene
WINDHOEK
SADC officials are in Windhoek for a two-day meeting to scrutinize the draft strategy for the implementation of the SADC Protocol on Fisheries.
The SADC Technical Committee Meeting comes in the realization by member states that harmonized policies to promote inland and marine aquaculture in the region are lacking.
Although the fishing sector is a critical contributor to economies in terms of income generation, employment creation, poverty alleviation and general upliftment of living standards, the potential contribution of the sector remains unexploited.
“For the SADC Region to get the best out of the fisheries resources, there is a need to implement the SADC Protocol on Fisheries, which came into force on August 8, 2003,” explained Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Kilus Nguvauva.
There is a need to develop a plan for the implementation of a legal instrument common to marine and inland fisheries, and also to set up the broad lines of a common fisheries policy, said Nguvauva.
“The Protocol has been ratified by ten member states, and time has come for its full implementation,” added the deputy minister.
Potential in the fisheries sector has mainly been affected by insufficient human and institutional expertise in the handling and processing of fish, especially value addition.
Lack of concrete interventions to address the constraints faced by women in the sector also remains another challenge.
Further, there has been a general concern over marine life having declined drastically over the past few years. Contributing factors to this high mortality rate are largely pollution from port industries, spillages from shipping vessels, humans killing marine animals and the low levels of pelagic fish stocks on which these animals feed.
The meeting will thus deliberate on issues related to these problems including illegal unreported and unregulated fishing.
The meeting will also share experiences on progress made by member states towards the implementation of this plan as well as identifying potential areas for project development in the fisheries sector.
Issues, which need policy decisions, will be identified, after which the programme of work for consideration by the SADC senior officials and ministers will be drawn up.
Nguvauva told delegates that, “We must intensify efforts to work together, develop and implement management measures and joint operations and continue to forge strong partnerships as illustrated by various regional projects on fisheries”.
The meeting concludes today.