WINDHOEK – The export value the fisheries sector increased by about N$700 million between 2011 and 2012, from just over N$5 billion to more than N$5.7 billion, according to government figures.
However, according to the industry the earnings could be increased further if private players make serious investments in secondary processing. Much of Namibia’s fish, especially hake, is exported for processing in other countries, complained the chairperson of the Confederation of Namibian Fishing Associations, Matti Amukwa. Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Bernard Esau, yesterday said the “performance of the fishing industry has been better than expected” in the period under review. “We have less fish but we are getting more economic benefits from each fish. This is due to the fact that many companies in the industry have been very successful in getting more value out of the quotas they have been allocated through value addition,” said Esau. Esau further said the fishing sector is also one of the main contributors to employment in the country, with about 13 500 people employed in the sector of which the majority are permanent appointments. “Namibianisation is a cornerstone of our fisheries policy. It is important, and aims at ensuring that we retain sovereign control over one of our most valuable renewable natural resources,” remarked Esau. However, according to Amukwa, secondary processing “at this stage is a missed opportunity as these products still have to be developed in Namibia via factory infrastructure that produces microwave-ready meals and the likes. Potentially a very lucrative product financially, this ultimate development of value-added products is not currently happening in Namibia, because it requires very expensive infrastructure.” Amukwa added that secondary processing is a huge opportunity particularly for the whitefish hake sector, which he estimated is worth 30 percent of the entire fisheries and aquaculture value chain worldwide. “Namibian hake is however being processed in other countries,” Amukwa observed, saying this needs to change.
Both Esau and Amukwa were speaking at a five-year sectoral execution-planning workshop in Windhoek yesterday. Amukwa also expressed concern over the existing environment to encourage secondary processing. “While the Namibian Ministry of Finance to date has refused the seafood sector Registered Manufacturing Status, if it is willing to grant it specifically for ‘secondary processing’ this will provide long-term benefits to the Namibian fisheries sector, as well as ultimately tax revenue for the country,” noted Amukwa.
Another issue that is of concern to the industry is the zoning off of facility areas for mariculture, which has not been formalized and which he says is causing difficulties in developing the area. “Zoning of mariculture land, which has been stalled over the past ten years, needs to be implemented through a successful mechanism for approvals through the relevant government authorities,” Amukwa said. During his opening statement Esau lauded Namibia’s fisheries sector for progressing well in terms of the granting of fisheries and harvesting rights, quota allocation and employment in the fisheries sector. The minister called on all stakeholders to engage in the planning process for the five-year plan, which will serve as a yard-stick in the implementation of fisheries sectoral goals. The five-year Fisheries Sector Plan is a ministerial plan, which will be aligned to the 4th National Development Plan (NDP4). The fisheries ministry has drafted a document, which Esau says will guide the workshop’s proceedings as an example to enable the ministry to come up with a final plan for the country’s fisheries sector as a whole.
“All programmes and projects which we will come up with today should talk to NDP4’s three goals. Let us plan and work together as the fisheries sector so that at the end of the process we can proudly say this is our plan, owned by all of us,” the fisheries minister stressed. Amukwa also highlighted the reasons for high-level dialogue to drive good policy implementation, saying import regulations should be reviewed with a view to eliminating potential barriers for importing raw materials for further processing in the country. This he says could be done by establishing bonded stores at fish processing facilities. “The Value Added Product Fish Export Levy needs to take into consideration issues such as the bulk of frozen, whole horse mackerel exports to go to markets that don’t want to pay for the value addition,” he said. He said the same applies to sales of monk-fish tails, which are an expensive premium product and encounter resistance from consumers to increase levels of value addition. “Also, the fledgling aquaculture sector at this stage simply can’t afford the levy,” according to Amukwa.
By Kuzeeko Tjitemisa