Nuusita Ashipala
ONGWEDIVA – Despite the call to add value to the sector, small-scale fisheries in Oshana do not have access to a market to sell their fish. As a result, hundreds of fishmongers are left to sell their fish informally at the open market or pension payout points while the surplus is left to lose value as there are no proper cooling or storage facilities.
Currently, fish is sold at N$20 for a bundle of five while some exchange fish for other food items. The revelations were made during a meeting between officials from the fisheries ministry and small-scale fishmongers from Uulili Lake in the Oshana region.
Deputy director of the fisheries ministry, Johannes Hamukwaya said the meeting seeks to educate small-scale farmers to fish sustainably and also educate them on the existing laws. Hamukwaya said the ministry also wants to hear the challenges experienced by the fishermen and to see how best to resolve them.
He said the focus has been on commercial fishing, however, the ministry realised that there is a big number of local fishermen at the grassroots level whose input is equally relevant in bettering the fishing sector. “We want to interrogate the challenges faced by the small-scale fishermen. Even in our laws we did not really pay attention to the small-scale farmers but the majority of our people are benefiting from this sector,” Hamukwaya said.
To date, 45 000 people benefit from small-scale fishing while about 280 000 people living along the coastal area, rivers and lakes get fish from this sector.In addition to the market, Elizabeth Ndivayele, who also oversees the catching areas in Oshana, said there is also a need for a structured plan for processing fish.
Ndivayele said at present, fish is processed traditionally through gutting and drying. She said that once gutted, except for the few who use nets, most use recycled materials such as plastic to dry the fish.
“The current means to process fish is unhygienic because the fish is dried in an open area and sometimes on the ground and as a result they sometimes have sand on them,” said Ndivayele.
On the human aspect, Ndivayele said the current camp for the fishers also needs to be looked at. They sleep in makeshift rooms made from recycled plastics without water or sanitation facilities.
In addition, they do not have proper fishing gear or life-saving jackets and many, especially women, cannot swim. Simon Kambala, who has been fishing for the last 23 years, said the fishers at Uulili are in dire need of fishing gear and a structured place to dry their fish to reduce the exposure of fish to sand. “We also need a cold storage so that our fish do not get spoiled when we catch a lot,” Kambala said.
The other concern, Kambala said, is the ministry only tells them what not to do but does not teach or show them the alternatives. “They confiscate our nets because we do not have the prescribed nets, but they do not show us the prescribed ones,” said Kambala.
*Nuusita Ashipala is an information officer at the MICT in Oshana.