Exports increased from just over N$5 billion in 2011 to more than N$5.7 billion in 2012.
The earnings from fish could potentially rise further if investment are made into further processing facilities in the country, as currently most of Namibia’s fish is exported for processing in other countries, said the chairperson of the Confederation of Namibian Fishing Associations, Matti Amukwa, NewEra reports.
Mr Amukwa added that secondary processing is a huge opportunity particularly for the whitefish hake sector, which he estimated is worth 30 per cent of the entire fisheries and aquaculture value chain worldwide.
The Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Bernard Esau, 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 Mr Esau.
Mr 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.
