Speaking at a Youth Town hall Meeting at Bukom, Mr Mahama said industrial trawlers are mainly the cause of the depletion hence they should be observing the break.

He added that, monitoring mechanisms must be put in place to deter industrial trawlers from fishing around areas where fish spawning takes place to help restore the depleted stocks.

The former President was responding to concerns by some fishermen who seemed unhappy about the implementation of the closed season.

Hundreds of young people gathered to demand answers to various questions about the future of this country and its development.

Source: Kwame Anum

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During a ceremony in Dixcove, Western Region on Monday, July 1, to mark the commencement of the closed season, Hawa Koomson cautioned that anyone caught violating the ban would face severe penalties.

The closed season, aimed at replenishing Ghana’s marine fisheries resources, has become an established annual practice in the fishing industry.

Set to last for a month, the government has reaffirmed its commitment to enforcing the ban to ensure the sustainability of Ghana’s fisheries resources.

“It has come to my notice that some fisherfolks are planning to land their fish at the Togo border during the Closed season, therefore, kindly be warned that they will be apprehended and charged if they go on with their intention. More so, there shall be no more use of monofilament nets and any unauthorized fishing gear after the opening of the season.”

However, some fishermen in Dixcove expressed concerns about the government’s failure to provide adequate support and premix fuel before the closed season, leaving them without sufficient income to support their families during the ban.

“They should have brought us adequate premix before the ban on fishing so we work to make some savings before the closed season so that nobody cries of hunger, but that didn’t happen. The closed fishing season going to make our feeding very difficult, and the government should put in place something to make life bearable for us before because,” one of them said.

“The one bag of rice they are bringing would not be enough for a family of four or more without money. How are we going to cope with this? So the government should rather put in place proper financial support for each fisherman because the fishing industry is the major source of livelihood in their Ahanta Area,” he added.

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Hawa Koomson, together with executives of the Fisheries Commission ‘stormed’ Keta to symbolically commence the ban on fishing activities, and admonish residents to abide by the regulations.

The initiative was kicked off with a dramatic symbolization from Hawa Koomson who wielded a huge wooden key to ‘lock the sea’.

In videos making rounds of the event, Hawa Koomson could be seen turning the wooden key in an anti-clockwise motion amid cheers and incantations from traditional elders who were present to observe the ceremony.

The intent is to ensure a bumper harvest for the next fishing season by giving aqua species space and time to nurture.

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This was after a stakeholders’ engagement with fishers at Denu and Keta, an agenda of the Minister’s three-day working visit to the Volta Region.

She also paid a courtesy call on Municipal Chief Executives for the respective assemblies; Elliot Edem Agbenorwu and Godwin Yao Effah.

Watch video of Hawa Koomson locking the sea below: