Torgbui Sri III, Awoamefia of Anlo State has commended the government of President Akufo-Addo for its commitment to the development of the fishing industry.

He said “government has not forgotten us.”

He said the interventions in the fishing sector would help improve food security, nutrition and livelihoods of millions of smallholder fishers and other users of the fishery resources in the country including; his people in Anlo.

Torgbui Sri said this, when Rev Johnson Avuletey, Deputy Volta Regional Minister together with Mr Godwin Edudzi Effah and Mr Seth Yormewu Municipal and District Chief Executives for Keta and Anloga respectively led a delegation from the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MoFAD) to pay a courtesy call on him at Anloga.

The visit was to enable Mrs Elizabeth Afoley Quaye, the Minister, Fisheries and Aquaculture Development to inform him of the latest of the President’s Fishing Input Support Scheme for fishers and the distribution of subsidised outboard motors.

The Awoamefia said it was heart-warming that the government was implementing policies to cater for the welfare of Ghanaians and “did not leave out our people in the fishing-dependent communities.”

Torgbui James-Ocloo V, Dufia of Keta called on the Minister to stop foreign trawlers in the Keta waters from harvesting surface dwelling species (a reserve of artisanal fishers) in addition to the bottom dwelling ones saying, this illegal activity was worrying as it was resulting in the low catch by fishermen in the area.

Mrs Elizabeth Afoley Quaye said the outboard motors were being given out to fishermen at about 50 per cent subsidy to support the livelihoods of fishers and the fishing community for improved living conditions.

She acknowledged prevailing illegal fishing practices and said government was working to put measures in place to avoid the depletion of the fish stock to ensure the sustainability of the fishery industry in the country.