GHANA'S FISHERIES: A STAKEHOLDER'S PERSPECTIVE

Someone asked me some time back why I do what I do and what keeps me fulfilled in what I do. I answered by telling them this story: In October of 2010, I volunteered to be shipped to Axim in the Western region of Ghana. It is a popular fishing community that is home to all the fishing gears in Ghana’s artisanal and semi-industrial fishing industry. It was also popular during the pre-independence days of Ghana; it’s where Pa Grant hails from! His grave sits just behind a ‘drinking spot’! I opted for Axim not because I was familiar with the community. In fact, I had never lived anywhere in the Western Region before. I chose Axim because I followed my untamed sense of adventure. I think it’s the same primordial sense that made the Fante fishermen so audacious on the sea! My job was simple: profile the community. How hard can this simple task be right? Well, it wasn’t difficult save for days my friend and I had to walk 4 hours from far away communities because transportation wasn’t a

“Sea never dry” is one of the many popular writings on fishing vessels seen along the beaches from Keta in the Volta Region to Half Assini in the westernmost part of Ghana. It is said to show how impossible it is for the vast sea resources to dry up.  Yes, it is unimaginable for the sea to dry up, but one thing is clear, the fish stock in the sea can “dry up,” reducing the sea to only transportation and hydrocarbon production. Statistics obtained on Sardinella [Emane], Anchovies [Keta school boys] and Mackerel from the Fisheries Commission on the status of fish stock from 1980 to 2014 paints a gloomy picture.  “These species have been decreasing sharply since 2007 and have reached in 2014 about 15% of the maximum landings realized in 1996. This trend will soon lead to the collapse of the resources and the fisheries sector,” Sustainable Fisheries Management Project, SFMP observes.  “Current fishing pressure [Number of boats and fishing trips] on small pelagic fis

Election Year, Directives and the Manomas : Implications For Fisheries Management In Ghana. Background Fishing in coastal communities in Ghana is not just an occupation, it's a way of life. Every activity in fishing communities relies on fishing. That is what sustains every economic activity in these communities and so as catches decline, economic life in these communities begins to gasp for air - the money that fishing brings. The government of Ghana through the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MoFAD) recognises this all-important sector and the need for change to sustain it. With this understanding, the Fisheries Commission of MoFAD created the momentum for change through the  release of the Republic of Ghana  Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector  Development Plan (2011–2015) and the National Marine Fisheries Management Plan (NMFMP). Both plans  acknowledge that Ghana’s fisheries  are falling well short of providing  sustainable benefits for the 2.7 million p

Sargassum   Sargassum  is a genus of brown (class  Phaeophyceae ) macroalgae ( seaweed ) in the order  Fucales . Numerous species are distributed throughout the temperate and tropical  oceans  of the world, where they generally inhabit shallow water and coral reefs. However, the genus may be best known for its planktonic (free-floating) species. While most species within the class Phaeophyceae are predominantly cold water organisms that benefit from nutrients upwelling, the genus Sargassum appears to be an exception to this general rule.  Any number of the normally  benthic  species may take on a  planktonic , often  pelagic  existence after being removed from reefs during rough weather. However, two species ( S. natans  and  S. fluitans ) have become holopelagic — reproducing vegetatively and never attaching to the seafloor during their lifecycle. The  Atlantic Ocean 's  Sargasso Sea  was named after the algae, as it hosts a large amount of  Sargassum. In recent times (act

Small Scale fishermen in Akwidaa, Western Region, Ghana In order to achieve sustainable fishing livelihoods in coastal communities, data on profitability of small-scale fisheries relative to fish species caught and gear types used by fishermen is required as part of a broader fisheries management strategy. This study was undertaken with this in mind. Interviews were conducted among 60 fishermen between February and March 2010. Economic assessment of small-scale fishing activities were done using questionnaires based on direct market pricing and contingent valuation methods. The results indicate that highly profitable fish species include Epinephelus aeneus, Sparus caeruleostictus, Dentex angolensis and Lutjanus goreensis valued at US$2.97, US$2.87, US$2.85 and US$2.63 per kilogram respectively. The less profitable species include Dasyatis margarita, Caranx crysos and Sardinella aurita valued at US$0.34, US$0.66 and US$ 0.85 per kilogram respectively. Although

Net making 'aboa akese', Butre, Western Region, Ghana   Ghanaian fishermen, traditionally, have enjoyed unimpeded access to the sea. Fishing with their traditionally handwoven twine nets and catching what they needed for subsistence and selling the excess. This practice continued but with time, the population increased. To compensate for the increase in population, the number of canoes increased and so did the number of fishermen and the fishing methods changed. Fishermen got access to new fishing equipment - they no longer relied on the handwoven nets but rather 'ready-made' nets. Fishermen saw fishing as a business and no longer a means of subsistence. Outboard engines were attached to their traditional dugout canoes, iceboxes were built and one-day fishing trips now extended to 3 or 4 days! Net lengths increased and mesh sizes decreased as there was now access to a cheaper form of net, the mono-filament nylon nets. "It catches fish faster because the fis