NAN-AE-3
Law
Dutse, Nov. 17, 2016 (NAN) The Federal Government has been advised to submit the 2014 European Union (EU’s) sponsored drafted National Fisheries bill to the National Assembly for consideration and passage.
Mr Evang Anthony, the National President, Fisheries Cooperative Federation of Nigeria (FCFN), gave the advice while speaking to newsmen on Thursday in Dutse.
Anthony called on the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh to submit the draft to the National Assembly for passage and to President Muhammadu Buhari for gazetting and enforcement.
“The FCFN makes a clarion call on the Minister of Agriculture to submit the drafted National Fisheries bill in the ministry’s archive sponsored by EU in 2014 to the national assembly and to President for gazetting and enforcement.
“This will solve most of the problems militating against the growth of the fisheries industry,’’ he said.
Anthony said lack of institutional capacity and poor budgetary allocation by both federal and state governments were among the major problems facing the industry.
Others are lack of fishing and aquaculture inputs supply at subsidised rate and lack of credit support and conditions attached if any.
Anthony also listed lack of fisheries data-base and its effect on policy policymakers, planners and research, lack of education and lack of modern fish markets, processing and preservation facilities.
He said lack of involvement of fisheries NGOs in the planning and implementation of policies and projects, high tariffs on fisheries inputs and its accessories among others are major challenges.
The president, however, called for the establishment of Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture as well as increase in budgetary allocation to fisheries by both federal and state governments.
This, he said, was the only way to actualise the government’s policy on diversification to non-oil sector.
Anthony further urged the governments to provide fishing and aquaculture inputs to fishers at subsidised price.
“It is not a crime that government is buying other agricultural machinery and making inputs such tractors, harvesters among others, available to crop farmers at subsidised rate.
“We hereby call on government at federal and state levels to provide fishing and aquaculture inputs to the fishers at subsidised prices,’’ he said. (NAN)
MNB//AOM/AFA
Edited by Abdullahi Mohammed/Felix Ajide
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