The sub-regional coordinator of West African Artisanal Fisheries Commission (WADAF), Marie Madeline Gomez last week met the community of Tanji with a view to identifying problems affecting the fishing industry, and to set the pace for a better roadmap for the best interest of fisher folks.
WADAF is an NGO operating in seven countries under the sub-regional fisheries commission and comprised Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea Conakry, and Sierra Leone.
Speaking at a daylong meeting, Madam Gomez expressed delight at the gesture and the warm hospitality accorded her by the Gambian people.
The purpose of the meeting, she added, was to share ideas and expertise with the fishing community on the status of the project, what has to be done regarding the juvenile fishes, among other things.
She explained that also part of the meeting was to discuss issues with the fisher folk relating to the use of bad nets in catching juvenile fish, as she underscored the importance of reserving juvenile fish as a source of producing more fish in the sea.
She said government alone cannot arrest the situation but with the collective efforts of the fisher folk, there would be a better market for traders, fish processors and the consumers.
For her part, Amie Ceesay Jaiteh, the President of National Fishery Operators in The Gambia, said the NGO was set up almost ten years ago and then noted that it has done a lot of projects with WADAF, which started three years ago.
According to her, the National Fishery Operators in The Gambia has benefitted from capacity-building initiatives.
Dawda Saine, the focal person at the Department of Fishery said the objective of the project was to improve the capacity of artisanal fisheries operators for the conservation of fishes.