Participants at the workshop

Mr. David Kofi Waaku, Project Manager for the Fish for Development, has noted that the project is an opportunity to learn and share knowledge between Ghana and Norway.

According to him, the project aims to provide a forum for fisheries officers to discuss, brainstorm ideas, and train each other in order to advance the four sectors of the fisheries industry namely; Fish Health, Trawl Gear, Monitoring Control and Surveillance, and the Marine Sector.

He was speaking to a group of Fisheries Commission personnel and a Norwegian team during a two-week training held at the Crismon Hotel in Tema by the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development in partnership with the Norwegian Embassy.

Mr. Wuako encouraged all participants to take advantage of this opportunity to acquire the requisite knowledge from experts over the course of the event.

Mr. Philips Jens – Otto Krakstad, the leader of the Norwegian team commended Ghana as an important fishing nation in Central West Africa due to its significance to the economy. “Both the artisanal and industrial sectors are of great importance to the economy of Ghana as they provide income to the nation and many communities”, He said.

Mr.  Jens added that the workshop will assist personnel to make laws and regulations for the fishing industry, as well as enlighten them on some old gears that are still in use, through practical demonstrations and lectures.

He stated that “By the end of the workshop, the objective is to eliminate the acquisition of yellow cards by Ghana and ensure that illegal fishing activities in Ghana are kept to a minimum.”

He reiterated that the team would study fisheries statistics over the years and provide some recommendations and advice at the end of the project. In light of this, small groups were formed to oversee specific tasks in gathering data for processing and analysis.

The Fish for Development Project is a technical cooperation between Ghana and Norway and the project seeks to outline the weaknesses in the fisheries sector and to provide the right remedies to address such problems. The program will also train personnel from Ghana to have control over the vessel regime.