Fishermen propose ban on undersize mesh nets

While on his four-day tour to the Greater Masaka sub-region to popularise the government’s wealth creation agenda in May, President Museveni ordered the screening of fishermen in Kalangala Islands to check the rampant illegal fishing activities on Lake Victoria.

According to the fishermen, many of their colleagues kill immature Nile Perch and Tilapia under the guise of catching silverfish using the 5-millimetre mesh nets instead of the commended 8-millimetre nets.

"The mesh nets currently being used by our colleagues who catch mukene [silverfish] also trap other immature fish species in big numbers, which is affecting the growth of fish stocks in the lake, we call for a total ban on those nets across the country, " Joseph Wavamuno, a fisherman from Kisaba landing site said on Sunday.  

According to Mr Museveni, the government will not inject more money into cage farming before the lake is cleared of illegal fishermen.

“Why don't you get the elders of Ssese and organise the fishing sector here? It needs people who control and regulate the activities on the lake,” the President said while addressing a rally at Kibanga Primary School in Kalanga on May 26.

Mr  Livingstone  Lutaaya, a  fisherman from the Kitobo landing site, said there is also a need to restrict fishermen from crossing to another district to fish, insisting that these are the ones abetting illegal fishing methods.

Ms Agnes Gimono Kaggwa, a woman councillor for Bufumira Sub County, suggested that the government involve women in the fight against illegal fishing, saying they are incorruptible.

“Different strategies have been used to end illegal fishing, but all these have failed because of corruption, especially among men. We request that this time the government involves us - the mothers because we are not easy to bribe," she said.

Mr Adrian Kavuma, the Kalangala District fisheries officer, said dwindling fish stocks in Lake Victoria is not only a result of illegal fishing but the increasing number of boats on the lake.

"Some fishermen own more than 10 boats and you realize that the more the boats, the less the fish catch. There is an urgent need to limit the number of boats in the lake,” he said.

Available statistics show that a total of 2,970 boats operate in Kalangala, however, only 2,228 boats are licensed -implying that 742 are operating illegally.

Of the 946 boats recommended for fishing silverfish, only 700 are licensed while of the 1,637 supposed to be in the Nile Perch business, only 1,200 are licensed and of the 387 boats cleared to engage in fishing Tilapia, only 200 are licensed in the 64 fishing villages in the district.

Ms Eva Kwesiga, the Kalangala Resident District Commissioner advised the fishermen to put their resolutions in a joint petition which she will present to the President soon.

Lake Victoria is the second-largest freshwater lake by surface area in the world. It harbours immense natural resources, including fisheries, forests and wetlands and is a major source of livelihood for more than 40 million people in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

The lake is also home to about 400 species of fish.

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