Fishermen call on government to ban large vessels from ‘negative activities’ in Gambian waters

The fishermen called on the authorities to implement a policy banning large vessels from fishing in designated fishing areas to safeguard their fishing rights and protect the country’s marine biodiversity.

They argue that large vessels damage marine ecosystems and deplete fish stocks that are vital to their livelihoods and the health of the country.

As controversy escalates over the presence of large vessels in fishing areas, fishermen are determined to gain government support.

Tangi fishmonger Adama Sanneh, who has been operating at the market for seven years, contrasted previous years with recent ones and said that tangi used to be a big source of income for her and other fishmongers because of the oversupply of fish. “However,” she lamented, “life has been tough for us in recent years because of the bad activities of large vessels in Gambia’s waters in our fishing areas. We rely on fishermen to catch fish or to catch enough fish to sell to us; but these large vessels make it difficult for them to catch fish. The only fishermen who can catch good fish are those who spend many days at sea.”

Sanne called on the government to help them meet this challenge.

Muhammed Gaye, a fisherman for 10 years, stressed that fishing boats are the reason why they cannot catch good fish. “These big boats use nets that catch both big and small fish, while the small fish are discarded, so it is difficult to catch good fish,” he said. “At the moment we’re just fishing, trying to make ends meet and then selling it to make ends meet.”

Another fisherman, Ash Gaye, who has been working for eight years, stressed that they face many challenges with big boats. “Most of the time, the boats hit our canoes and break them and there is nothing we can do about it,” he said, adding: “Other times, they hit canoes with people on board and this results in loss of life because the big boats are more powerful than the canoes.”

Guy also claimed that the fishermen of these vessels do not sell the fish they catch to Gambians. “However, we sell all the fish we catch to our people to feed the country and also to sustain ourselves,” he said.

He urged the government to intervene in the issue and ensure that the fishing industry is restored so that they can catch good fish to sell to the state and still make a living.