FAO.org

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and fisheries (LVV) has provided a three-day training "fisheries inspection at sea" in collaboration with the Coast Guard suriname. The training has been held in the framework of the FAO / GEF project "Sustainable Management of bycatch in Latin America and Caribbean Trawl Fisheries", REBYC-II LAC. This project aims to reduce by-catches in trawl fisheries at sea. Bycatch is the incidental catch of non-target species such as dolphins, sea turtles and young fish. To ensure sustainable fisheries management, the reduction of by-catches is crucial. To this end, control and inspection of the fishing methods and techniques used is necessary.

Inspections of fishing activities at sea are among the core tasks of the Coast Guard. As such, the Coast Guard is considered a crucial partner of the ministry of LVV. The training, which is now held for the second time, has already proven to be an eye-opener for those who carry out inspections at sea, says Colonel Jerry Slijngard, Director Coast Guard. The training is intended to inform the Coast Guard and to teach them to carry out fisheries inspections in a correct and efficient way. During the training, information has been provided on the different fishing methods and their license conditions, identification of fish species and the legislative framework under which fisheries in Suriname take place.

Each fishing vessel in Suriname is required to operate under a valid fishing license. This license stipulates conditions for each fishery type, which relate to the allowed fishing gear, size of the boat, engine power, fishing zone, authorized target species and so on. In order to ensure compliance with these conditions,, monitoring, control and surveillance is essential. Fishing activities that take place at sea should be monitored by the competent authorities for compliance with the license conditions. At the opening of the training, the acting director of LVV, Deepak Jairam, indicated that for effective and efficient fisheries inspections, a close cooperation between the Fisheries Department, the Coast Guard and other stakeholders is essential. 

 The training was closed with a certificate distribution on Thursday, March 28, 2019.