The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development in collaboration with the Fisheries Commission has announced July and August as the dates for the 2021 Closed Season for both artisanal and industrial fishing fleets in Ghana.
A statement signed and issued by the Executive Director of the Fisheries Commission, Mr Michael Arthur-Dadzie, dated June 10, 2021, announced July 1 to July 31, 2021 as the closed season period for artisanal fishers while industrial fishers are to go off from August 1 to August 31, 2021.
He called for the support and collaboration of all players in the fishing industry to ensure the successful implementation of the closed season in the country.
“The Fisheries Commission will like to bring to the attention of all fishing operators to berth at port/anchorage or at the various landing sites before mid-night of 30th June 2021,” he requested.
The term “closed season”, or “biological rest period”, refers to the stopping of fishing during the spawning period of the fish.
It is a way of reducing fishing pressure on stocks when they are most productive in terms of allowing the fish a chance to lay their eggs to replace the lost population due to fishing and other natural causes.
A closed season will be most successful when other types of fishing pressure are also controlled such as the use of illegal small mesh size nets, light fishing, use of poisons and toxic chemicals, and explosives.
Ghana observed its first closed season in 2019. The country however, did not observe the rule in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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