Durrant Pate/Contributor

The local fisheries sector is getting a J$29-million aid package, which includes grants and vouchers to fisher folks from the Government of Jamaica.

Agriculture Minister Floyd Green, who made the announcement in a statement to parliament, said the aid package is in support of the government’s continuation of the Fisheries Sector Production Improvement Programme, which launched in 2020.

Today, some J$29 million has been identified to continue and expand the programme, to include the provision of grants, vouchers and safety gear for fisherfolk.

The programme is now being operationalised by the ministry through the National Fisheries Authority (NFA). Green announced the provision outboards motor fuel grants in which vouchers valued at J$10,000 will be made available to all eligible boat owners.

Criteria for qualification

The minister declared that as an incentive for those fishers, this benefit is for those fishing vessel owners/operators, who for a minimum of two consecutive years, maintained their vessel licenses for the 2021-2023 calendar years.

Approximately 400 fishing vessel operators will qualify for this support.

The total allocation to this activity is J$4 million. In addition, there will be fishing and fish marketing gear grants with the objective of encouraging more youth and women to participate in underutilised and emerging fisheries.

According to Green, “small grants of up to $120,000 will be made available to qualified fishers under the age 35 years. The qualified fishers must have been operating in the industry for more than three years and have been duly registered as a fisher. Members of Parliament with fishing beaches, local community organisations including fishing groups will be asked to make nominations for the most suitable candidates.“

Some 50 Jamaican youth, including young women, will be targeted for this support. Selected individuals must provide a proposal on how they intend to improve their business with the grant with the total allocation for this activity being J$6 million.

Incentive for safety gear

The ministry is offering an incentive of J$7 million for safety gear for fishers, who operate on offshore and pelagic fishing beaches. This, he said, would act as an incentive for fisherfolk to explore greater opportunities in the blue economy, especially in the offshore fisheries areas such as the Pedro and Morant Banks. Safety, communication and navigation equipment will be provided to those fishers who qualify.

The equipment will include life jackets, marine VHF radios and GPS devices, with approximately 500 licensed fishers targeted for this support.

The final incentive from the programme is for fishing gear for fishers in need of assistance.

This support is for those fishers, who have been identified as most in need of external assistance for their livelihoods, where up to 600 fishers will be provided with fishing gear valued at J$20,000 each. The opportunity will be provided to fishers from each of the 14 parishes based on recommendations from the community associations and verified as authentic by the NFA’s extension officers.

The total allocation for this activity is $12 million, where 600 fishers are slated to benefit. In total some 1,550 licensed fishers are set to benefit from this J$29 million aid programme.