Fishing in Mozambique
Thématique :
mozambique
Fred Hoogervorst, Africa News, 10/02/2008
Mozambique, 22 times the Netherlands, has 18m inhabitants. This country with a coast line of 2470 km, divided over seven coastal provinces, where tiger prawns are finger-licking good and the local population is very welcoming and pleasant, is increasingly renown and is well known in the tourism sector for its exotic beaches, palm trees and underwater sports for scuba diving and snorkeling.
Sadly, another fact is that the country is among the poorest of the world, and, over recent decennia, it is stricken by huge floods and cyclones. The Netherlands and Mozambique are closely associated. Agriculture and Fishery generate by far the biggest part of income and employment, appr. 80% of the population lives of agriculture and fishery. The latter is for many Mozambicans of vital importance.
The fast growing population depends for half of its protein supply on fish, the average consumption being ca. 7.5 kg per person per annum. Well over 500,000 people are dependent on traditional fishery activities along the coast, another 95,000 people are directly involved. In 2004 some 90,000 fishermen were employed in traditional coastal fishing and 12,000 wooden, un-motorized boats were used. Pushed forward by the wind, they sailed, among many wooden canoes in which fishermen paddled forward, they brought 115,000 to 140,000 ton fish ashore.
Mainly trawl nets are in use, between 100 and 250 meter off shore. They are launched from small boats, almadias, that have seven to ten people aboard, up to three, four times a day. Whenever they have a huge draught, for a small percentage of that as their gain, twelve or more local people are being called in to assist to haul in the net.
Mozambican fishermen and their families are a subordinated group of the rural population / peasantry. Overfishing is a problem all over Africa, so it is not surprising that the gain in Mozambique too, is under pressure, and the consumption per capita of the in numbers still increasing population is decreasing.
Delicate ecosystems along the coast are locally affected by felling mangrove forests among other things. Whereas these areas are the breeding grounds for young fish. The usage of micromesh mosquito nets has a devastating effect. In the northern province, dynamite fishing by Tanzanian fishermen near the coral reefs causes tremendous problems and the pirate ships, hugging the shore fishing illegally, compete with the small-scale traditional fishery of the local fishermen communities.
The EU and Mozambique signed partner agreement for fishery on January 1, 2007, covering a five year period. An amount of 900,000 Euro is allocated to provide trawlers from the EU community fishing opportunities. The aim is to apply sustainable methods Fishery however proves rewarding, as shown by the fact that the prawn export provides 50% of the Mozambican exports income.
Mozambique, 22 times the Netherlands, has 18m inhabitants. This country with a coast line of 2470 km, divided over seven coastal provinces, where tiger prawns are finger-licking good and the local population is very welcoming and pleasant, is increasingly renown and is well known in the tourism sector for its exotic beaches, palm trees and underwater sports for scuba diving and snorkeling.
Sadly, another fact is that the country is among the poorest of the world, and, over recent decennia, it is stricken by huge floods and cyclones. The Netherlands and Mozambique are closely associated. Agriculture and Fishery generate by far the biggest part of income and employment, appr. 80% of the population lives of agriculture and fishery. The latter is for many Mozambicans of vital importance.
The fast growing population depends for half of its protein supply on fish, the average consumption being ca. 7.5 kg per person per annum. Well over 500,000 people are dependent on traditional fishery activities along the coast, another 95,000 people are directly involved. In 2004 some 90,000 fishermen were employed in traditional coastal fishing and 12,000 wooden, un-motorized boats were used. Pushed forward by the wind, they sailed, among many wooden canoes in which fishermen paddled forward, they brought 115,000 to 140,000 ton fish ashore.
Mainly trawl nets are in use, between 100 and 250 meter off shore. They are launched from small boats, almadias, that have seven to ten people aboard, up to three, four times a day. Whenever they have a huge draught, for a small percentage of that as their gain, twelve or more local people are being called in to assist to haul in the net.
Mozambican fishermen and their families are a subordinated group of the rural population / peasantry. Overfishing is a problem all over Africa, so it is not surprising that the gain in Mozambique too, is under pressure, and the consumption per capita of the in numbers still increasing population is decreasing.
Delicate ecosystems along the coast are locally affected by felling mangrove forests among other things. Whereas these areas are the breeding grounds for young fish. The usage of micromesh mosquito nets has a devastating effect. In the northern province, dynamite fishing by Tanzanian fishermen near the coral reefs causes tremendous problems and the pirate ships, hugging the shore fishing illegally, compete with the small-scale traditional fishery of the local fishermen communities.
The EU and Mozambique signed partner agreement for fishery on January 1, 2007, covering a five year period. An amount of 900,000 Euro is allocated to provide trawlers from the EU community fishing opportunities. The aim is to apply sustainable methods Fishery however proves rewarding, as shown by the fact that the prawn export provides 50% of the Mozambican exports income.
