Our Fishing Industry Needs Digitisation - Ag President of the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Association

Ag President of the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Association, Nana Jojo Solomon has called on regulators in the Fishing industry to digitalize the activities of the sector.

According to him all around the world there is digitalisation of fishing activities but Ghana's fishing sector continues to use the old ways of doing things, which has compounded challenges facing the Industry, saying, "it is the same sea that people are using technology to do fishing and other sea related works. And this is an unfair competition for us".

He indicated that by now the people they work with as regulators should've taken them to a different level in technology, and these are basically the problems they (fishermen)are facing as publicists.

He was speaking at a media training in Elmina of the central region with the support from the USAID and its a five year project.

The three day training was to equip the media with the needed knowledge and skills to better understand the fisheries sector, the challenges confronting the sector and the key role the media will play to recover the decline stocks.

He called on the media to educate and sensitize the public on fisheries and to get closer to the fisherfolks, so, that they (media) can understand some of these things, as they take them to see what happens on the ground and how the systems is being operated.

He, therefore, called for constant and frequent interactions between regulators such as the Fisheries Commission and the premix secretariat for the wayforward for the fishing industry.

Nana Solomon revealed that there is no premix in the system, hence no one from the authorised institution has come to engage with us about the problem causing its shortage.

"We can also make our input in solving some of the premix problems by taking some of the subsidise off government to lessen its burden. But as at now, nobody has come to us from the premix secretariat for such purpose".

Senior Lecturer and Microbiologist at the University of Cape Coast, Dr Cynthia Adinortey on her part urged fishmongers to use improved stoves as it's not harmful to the body when used to smoke the fish.

Chief of Party, USAID, Heather D'Agnes observed that Ghana's fishing sector is in a serious state of decline and they need to work together with the government, fishermen, industries to improve the help of the fisheries and make sure it is in abundance worth in the future of the fisheries industry as well as the economy.