The staff of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD), Customs, and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard are among key stakeholders undergoing training to improve their capacity to combat illegal fishing.
A three-day workshop, held at the Cara Lodge, began yesterday to increase awareness on the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA) to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing; increase understanding about the international and regional initiatives and tools to combat illegal fishing; build capacity among key stakeholders in Guyana for implementation of the PSMA and related instruments that address flag state responsibilities; and draft legislation as necessary to facilitate the implementation of the PSMA.
Denzil Roberts, Chief Fisheries Officer, stated that the workshop, which was jointly organised by the Fisheries Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and the FAO, is aimed at combatting illegal fishing, which continues to be a threat to effective conservation and management of fisheries resources in the Caribbean region despite many efforts by the government and other stakeholders.
“[Illegal] fishing leads to the loss of both short and long-term social and economic opportunities and to negative effects on food security and environmental protection,” Roberts said at the opening session yesterday, where he warned that if the problem is not dealt with then it can lead to the collapse of a fishery or seriously impair efforts to rebuild stocks that have already been depleted.
He said that illegal fishers are unlikely to observe rules and regulations to protect the aquatic environment and stocks from harmful fishing activities. “They often violate basic safety-at-sea requirements, putting themselves and others at risks,” he said, while also noting that they gain an unjust advantage over legitimate fishers and benefit unfairly from sacrifices made by legitimate fishers for the sake of stock conservation and fisheries management.
Roberts noted that some of the benefits of implementing port state measures include contributing to the sustainability of the resource and the income of legitimate fishers, strengthened linkages with and enhanced impact of other compliance tools and international agreements, improved training, obtaining robust information that can be effectively used for fisheries management and cooperation with flag states to halt poaching by their vessels.
“Port state measures can help to enforce conservation and management measures taken by regional fisheries management organisations in areas of high seas. Properly implemented, they can also deter illegal transshipment and supply at sea,” he added.
He said that while the FAO recognised that there are no quick fixes, the practical training workshop will build on what was presented in 2014 at the first regional training workshop in the Caribbean and will help build the capacity of the local institutions and human resources to implement the port and related state measures.
Speaking on behalf of the Agriculture Minister, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture George Jervis said that the workshop was imperative in the fight against illegal fishing.
“Let me also say that it is not the foreign investors that are involved; the Fisheries Department, in collaboration with MARAD, will try to do what is mandatory of the law and licence every vessel for fishing,” he said.
Jervis pointed out that based on the amount of persons that have come forward for licences, there is indeed a problem with illegal fishing. “Some parts of the country, the entire fleet you won’t find more than 5% to 10% of persons with licenses,” he added.
Jervis noted that the fishing industry represents earnings of about US$75 million annually and employs about 15,000 persons.
“More often than not it is the only source of protein that the very poor can afford…. And the Government of Guyana takes the fishing industry very seriously and hence has signed onto the PSMA,” he added.
He said that one group cannot combat the issue. He noted that it is unfortunate that the Fisheries Department is unable to go out on patrols on its own and is unable to stop vessels to make sure they are certified and licensed, while saying that there must be a collaborative effort between the department and the sister agencies. “We have had some bad experiences which are not directly linked to [illegal fishing] but shows more work needs to be done,” he said.
Jervis stated that when the Fisheries Department closes the season on fishing, it is not really closed as other illegal fishers ignore the warnings. “Is it really closed or closed to Guyanese legal fishers?” he questioned, while lamenting that while the department tries to replenish the stock to safeguard there are people who don’t care.
He urged that those participating in the workshop will ensure that what is put on paper will be implemented so as to fight the illegal fishing, which can be bigger than stray vessels being in the area to steal a few catches.
