ZAMBIA REAFFIRMS COMMITMENT TO REGIONAL FISHERIES POLICY INSTRUMENTS

Zambia says it remains committed to supporting regional policy instruments aimed at strengthening the conservation, sustainability, and fair utilization of global fisheries resources.

Director of Fisheries EVANS MUTANUKA says fisheries resources are under increasing pressure, which, if not addressed through progressive policy instruments, could negatively affect global fish supplies, food security, and livelihoods.

Mr MUTANUKA says the region should explore policy instruments that create greater opportunities for landlocked countries to participate in accessing and utilizing marine fisheries resources, in accordance with international protocols.

He was speaking in Lusaka when he officiated at a National Stakeholders Consultative Workshop on the Development of Southern African Development Community—SADC—Regional Policy Instruments for Fisheries and Aquaculture, held at the Radisson Blu Hotel.

The workshop is being attended by about 70 fisheries and aquaculture stakeholders from Zambia and Malawi, and partner institutions.

Meanwhile, SADC Fisheries Programme Officer LILIAN NYASHANU says the region loses about FOUR HUNDRED MILLION United States dollars annually due to Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated—IUU—fishing.

Ms NYASHANU says the workshop seeks to address this and other challenges through the development of regional policy instruments on the World Trade Organization Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries, and the Regional Aquaculture Strategy and Action Plan.

And GIZ Sustainable Aquatic Foods Project Advisor MAZUBA MWANACHINGWALA says Zambia and Malawi have been provided with ONE MILLION EUROS to support the integration of fish into school feeding programmes.

Ms MWANACHINGWALA says FOURTEEN schools, seven in Mansa and seven in Kawambwa, have been selected as pilot sites for the programme.

Source : Ministry of Fisheries & Livestock – Zambia