Addressing the opening of a five-day inaugural meeting of the Regional
Fisheries Committee on the Coherence of Policies in the Fishery Industry in
the ECOWAS Region, on 27 August 2012 in Cotonou, Benin, Dr Atouga noted
that constraints in the sector included inadequate transport infrastructure
and challenges posed by security agents to the implementation of aspects of
the regional Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons, Goods and Services.
Quoting the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) statistics, Commissioner
Atouga said the regions total fish production, together with overall inflows,
was estimated at 2.2 million tonnes in 2008, which represented 3.5 per cent of
the global production and about 22 per cent of the total production in Sub-
Saharan Africa.
He argued that the region has the potential to increase its fish output with
effective organization of key stakeholders into fishing and processing groups.
According to him, the formation of such groups could help address some factors
impeding fish production, such as poor management and governance, illegal
fishing practices due to inefficiency in resource monitoring and supervision,
and persistent huge post-harvest losses in fish capture.
Others are non-compliance with hygienic standards and quality of products and
low level of development of aquaculture, particularly ill-adapted commercial
strategies for the production of fish resources.
While describing fishery and aquaculture as a potential sector of social and
economic integration, Dr Atouga reiterated ECOWAS determination to work for
the development of both sectors by strengthening existing cooperation with all
stakeholders.
He also disclosed that ECOWAS is engaged in a series of programmes with the
Songhai Centre in Porto Novo, Benins political capital, for the training of
ECOWAS youth in productive ventures, among which are fish farming and
processing of fish by means of drying techniques.
The Commissioner charged participants to focus on the objective of the meeting
which is to establish a Regional Committee on Coherence of Fisheries Policy in
the ECOWAS Region and the three Sub-committees on Governance, Trade and
Aquaculture.
These are essential tools for ECOWAS and its Member States to leverage
fisheries for sustainable wealth creation and the fight against poverty, he
affirmed.
In his welcome address, the Benin Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and
Fisheries Mr Sabai Kat, highlighted the economic importance of the fishery
and aquaculture sector.
He, however, noted that the unrestrained exploitation of fishery resources to
meet the food and nutritional needs of citizens without an appropriate
development policy posed a serious threat to all ECOWAS Member States.
The minister, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry,
Mr Olivier Vigan, said the search for a coherent policy among Member States
would assist in balancing the increase in revenue, exploitation of resources
and food security in the region.
In fact, the lack of the resource creates a lot of tensions, of which the
root causes are generally attributed to issues of access to the resource,
market access or, yet still, the lack of dialogue in the implementation of
national, sectoral and regional policies, he added.
The minister noted that a Regional Committee would also play an advisory role,
with the support of all stakeholders, particularly non-state actors, in
collaboration with Member States, inter-governmental organisations and
development partners.
He expressed confidence that ECOWAS and the various governments would provide
the needed resources for the smooth functioning of the Regional Committee, the
thematic sub-committees on managing fisheries, trade and aquaculture as well
as national committees which would be established alongside the Regional
Committee.
The minister said the Government of Benin, through its Agricultural Sector
Strategic Recovery Plan (PSRPA), places emphasis on measures to promote the
agricultural sector - especially fish and shrimps production and supports all
ECOWAS initiatives on fishery and aquaculture development.
Policy Harmonisation for Fisheries Development
WEST AFRICA - The Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) Commissioner for Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources, Dr Marc Atouga, has called on Member States to harmonize their policies and efforts in the fisheries sector to boost intra-regional trade in fish products.
by Lucy Towers