Cabinet’s stringent new bycatch regulations backed by industry
Private fishing sector operators have expressed strong support for government's decision to introduce stricter bycatch regulations in Namibia’s fishing industry.
The measures, announced last Tuesday by information minister Emma Theofelus following the 16th Cabinet meeting, include a 2% bycatch threshold, tougher penalties for non-compliance and a public register of violators.
Wet Landed Small Pelagic Association chairperson Johny Doeseb said the decision reflects “progressive leadership” in strengthening sustainable fisheries management and aligns Namibia with international best practice, which generally allows up to 5% bycatch.
“By setting a lower and more responsible standard, the Namibian government has reinforced its commitment to ecosystem protection, responsible resource management and sustainable fisheries that can serve as a global model,” he said.
The association, representing fishers and operators who land and handle species such as pilchards, horse mackerel, anchovies and other small pelagic fish directly as catch for processing, commended the state for positioning the industry to contribute to food security, economic diversification, job creation and environmental conservation.
Doeseb also highlighted the role of the Fisheries Observers Agency in ensuring “real-time, accurate monitoring at sea and at landing sites” and called for consistent enforcement to protect compliant operators from being undermined by illegal or wasteful practices.
According to the association, Cabinet's decision addresses key priorities, including reducing indiscriminate harvesting, imposing harsher sanctions such as licence suspensions or revocations for repeat offenders, and improving transparency through the publication of offenders’ names.
Tougher penalties
The fisheries ministry has been directed to enforce the new rules, which allow companies to retain up to 2% bycatch.
Any catch above this limit will attract bycatch fees and forfeiture at no cost to the government.
Bycatch percentage fees will be increased from 15% to 50% in line with the Marine Resources Act.
Repeat offenders face temporary or permanent licence suspensions, while severe or repeated violations may result in the confiscation of fishing gear, seizure of vessels and deduction of excess catch from future quotas.
The measures also include the annual public listing of bycatch violators to discourage non-compliance.
Unsustainable tolerance
The endorsement follows months of industry criticism over pilchard being landed as “bycatch” despite the moratorium.
Doeseb previously accused regulators of tolerating repeat offenders and failing to suspend or sanction a vessel allegedly responsible for large pilchard landings, saying the practice had been “tolerated for far too long.”
He pointed to industry figures showing that pilchard bycatch in the horse mackerel fishery more than doubled from 6 504 tonnes in 2023 to 12 610 tonnes in 2024.
The fisheries ministry had also cautioned that recent pilchard landings worth more than N$23 million over a two-month period suggested some of the bycatch was not incidental but deliberate.
Reform urgent
Officials stressed that the national pilchard stock remains below the one-million-tonne biomass threshold set for reopening the fishery.
Bycatch concerns have been raised for years, with the industry citing economic losses, wasted resources and risks to biodiversity.
Before Cabinet’s decision, calls for reform focused on reducing indiscriminate harvesting, improving real-time monitoring and increasing transparency through public reporting.
Alongside the bycatch regulations, Cabinet approved a 10 000-tonne pilchard total allowable catch for governmental objectives for the remainder of 2025, with the moratorium to remain in place for at least three more years or until the biomass target is met.
All pilchard taken under this quota must be caught with environmentally friendly methods and processed locally.
The measures, announced last Tuesday by information minister Emma Theofelus following the 16th Cabinet meeting, include a 2% bycatch threshold, tougher penalties for non-compliance and a public register of violators.
Wet Landed Small Pelagic Association chairperson Johny Doeseb said the decision reflects “progressive leadership” in strengthening sustainable fisheries management and aligns Namibia with international best practice, which generally allows up to 5% bycatch.
“By setting a lower and more responsible standard, the Namibian government has reinforced its commitment to ecosystem protection, responsible resource management and sustainable fisheries that can serve as a global model,” he said.
The association, representing fishers and operators who land and handle species such as pilchards, horse mackerel, anchovies and other small pelagic fish directly as catch for processing, commended the state for positioning the industry to contribute to food security, economic diversification, job creation and environmental conservation.
Doeseb also highlighted the role of the Fisheries Observers Agency in ensuring “real-time, accurate monitoring at sea and at landing sites” and called for consistent enforcement to protect compliant operators from being undermined by illegal or wasteful practices.
According to the association, Cabinet's decision addresses key priorities, including reducing indiscriminate harvesting, imposing harsher sanctions such as licence suspensions or revocations for repeat offenders, and improving transparency through the publication of offenders’ names.
Tougher penalties
The fisheries ministry has been directed to enforce the new rules, which allow companies to retain up to 2% bycatch.
Any catch above this limit will attract bycatch fees and forfeiture at no cost to the government.
Bycatch percentage fees will be increased from 15% to 50% in line with the Marine Resources Act.
Repeat offenders face temporary or permanent licence suspensions, while severe or repeated violations may result in the confiscation of fishing gear, seizure of vessels and deduction of excess catch from future quotas.
The measures also include the annual public listing of bycatch violators to discourage non-compliance.
Unsustainable tolerance
The endorsement follows months of industry criticism over pilchard being landed as “bycatch” despite the moratorium.
Doeseb previously accused regulators of tolerating repeat offenders and failing to suspend or sanction a vessel allegedly responsible for large pilchard landings, saying the practice had been “tolerated for far too long.”
He pointed to industry figures showing that pilchard bycatch in the horse mackerel fishery more than doubled from 6 504 tonnes in 2023 to 12 610 tonnes in 2024.
The fisheries ministry had also cautioned that recent pilchard landings worth more than N$23 million over a two-month period suggested some of the bycatch was not incidental but deliberate.
Reform urgent
Officials stressed that the national pilchard stock remains below the one-million-tonne biomass threshold set for reopening the fishery.
Bycatch concerns have been raised for years, with the industry citing economic losses, wasted resources and risks to biodiversity.
Before Cabinet’s decision, calls for reform focused on reducing indiscriminate harvesting, improving real-time monitoring and increasing transparency through public reporting.
Alongside the bycatch regulations, Cabinet approved a 10 000-tonne pilchard total allowable catch for governmental objectives for the remainder of 2025, with the moratorium to remain in place for at least three more years or until the biomass target is met.
All pilchard taken under this quota must be caught with environmentally friendly methods and processed locally.
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article