Early govt fish auction a ‘good thing’

The fishing industry considers the ‘early’ auction of government objective quota as a positive step in ensuring that potential bidders have enough time to bid and prepare for operations.

This according to Matti Amukwa, the chairman of the Confederation of Namibian Fishing Associations, who said they have "always been advocating for the auction to take place early, at the beginning of the fishing season".

He said the industry agreed that the objectives quota is an important source of income for government to raise funds to attend to “pressing national issues”.

It is important that the quota are caught and processed by Namibian companies as this will stimulate local job creation, he added.

Last week, the finance ministry advertised an invitation to bid for the disposal of the government objective horse mackerel quota of 11 090 tonnes to the highest bidder.

The objective quota allows government to utilise or harvest marine resources to advance any socio-economic, cultural or other governmental objectives in the public interest.

Bidders were invited to submit bids by 10:00 on 29 April. International bidders should submit their bids via email, while all bids must be accompanied by proof of payment of a N$1 000 non-refundable administrative fee.

'Very disappointed'

Daniel Imbili, president of Namibia Fishing Industries and Fishermen Worker's Union, said the unions are “very disappointed” that they have not been included in the auction process to ensure that successful bidders are able to recruit the hundreds of fishermen who have been laid off over the past few years.

While many in the fishing industry, including those who went on an illegal strike, were reabsorbed into the industry thanks to government intervention, there are still about 400 workers waiting for an opportunity to be accommodated, Imbili said.

He added that the auction provides a good opportunity for these workers to be employed.

“If the fisheries ministry communicated with the unions, we could advise that those companies and vessels processing the auctioned quota could include these Namibians who are still without work,” he said. “Foreign or Namibian-chartered vessels who will catch these quota can also take the people.”

“The unions must be informed so they can make positive contributions to any decisions that affect the industry,” he said, adding that politics must be removed from the process so that the auction is done in a transparent and responsible manner.

Imbili also noted foreign companies that have invested in Namibia and are able to give “those lying on the streets jobs” should not be discriminated against.

Time constraints

Earlier this year, fisheries minister Derek Klazen said a domino-effect of factors - which started with a late auction of the government objectives quota last year - resulted in a belated allocation of 27 300 tonnes of horse mackerel worth about N$85 million to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

He said the fact that last year’s auction was conducted late imposed time constraints on successful bidders to organise and coordinate their logistics and legal compliance documents to catch and land their purchased quota.

To avoid costly repercussions to government coffers and to benefit to the local industry, the ministry made the decision for auctions to take place on time, Klazen said.