The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry will start the fishing rights allocation process soon.
The consultative process is now in full swing and officially started last week when the Draft Revised General Policy on the Allocations and Management of Fishing Rights was released, according to the department that says a meeting was also held with representatives from the fishing sector.
The purpose and objectives of the General policy and the Fishery specific policies include:
- promotinge food security and socio-economic development through the sustainable use of fisheries resources;
- promoting transformation, broaden meaningful participation and growth in the fisheries sector;
- supporting and developing regulatory and management mechanisms aimed at promoting sustainable use/management of fisheries resources;
- achieving the recognition, protection and support of small-scale fishers;
- promoting the recognition of the interdependency of the social, cultural, economic and ecological dimensions of small-scale fishery systems;
- achieving the incorporation of a community-based rights approach to the allocation of marine living resources;
- promoting the allocation of resources through a multi-species approach;
- introduce measures and mechanisms that prioritise the small-scale fisheries sector within the fishing industry;
- and introducing the mechanisms and structures that promote a community orientation, co-management and community-based approach in the harvesting and management of marine living resources within the small-scale fisheries sector.
The General and Fishery specific policies are informed by government’s key policies, namely the National Development Plan (NDP), the Integrated Growth and Development Plan (IGDP) for agriculture, forestry and fisheries, the New Growth Path (NGP), the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) and the Comprehensive Rural Development Programme (CRDP).
Fishing rights in eight fisheries sectors are expiring in December this year (2013). These sectors are KwaZulu-Natal prawn trawl, demersal shark, squid, tuna pole, hake hand line, white mussels, oysters and traditional line fish. Call for applications are expected to be gazetted in next month (May).
News courtesy of SAnews.gov.za
(edited)
All articles edited or written, all photos taken plus all adverts designed by the Editor and printed in the St Francis Chronicle are protected by the law of Copyright ©. Reproduction or copying of any part of the contents of this newspaper and its concept and design can only be done with the Editor’s written permission.
St Francis Chronicle 