ACCRA, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Ghana on Wednesday kick-started a two-month closed fishing season for all industrial trawlers operating on Ghanaian seas, beginning February 1.
The ban, which ends on March 31, is to help in reducing the excessive pressure on, and over-exploitation of fish stocks, the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MOFAD) said in a statement issued in Accra.
The statement directed owners, operators and masters of industrial trawlers to comply with the declared closed season or face hefty fines.
"In line with the Fisheries Act, violating this directive shall attract fines ranging from 500,000 U.S. dollars to 2 million dollars as well as forfeiture of the catch, fishing gear or vessel to the state," the statement said.
The ministry expects none of the over 80 trawlers to operate in Ghanaian waters during the closed season.
Ghana is still harvesting the same quantity of fish it was harvesting 50 and 60 years ago of about four million fish a year due to various unregulated means used to catch fish, according to Kofi Agbogah, Director of Hen Mpoano, a non-governmental organization.
