High fuel prices push fishermen in Kalangala out of trade
People board boats at the Kasenyi Landing Site in Entebbe, Wakiso District on May 5, 2022. PHOTO | ISAAC KASAMANI
What you need to know:
Shs7,000: The cost of a litre of petrol at Nkose Landing Site in Kalangala.
Fishermen on Nkose island in Kalangala District have suspended fishing activities over rising fuel prices.
They claim they are incurring losses since the process of catching fish has become too costly with their engine boats.
A litre of petrol on Nkose costs Shs7,000 compared to Shs5,500 or Shs5,900 charged by different filling stations in other areas.
“We have decided to suspend fishing activities because we cannot afford making losses all the time,” Mr John Ssembuule, the secretary for fishermen at Nkose Landing Site, said on Sunday.
“For instance, one requires 30 litres of fuel to sail to areas where we catch at least 40kgs of Nile Perch, a recommended size, yet in the past, only 15 litres were enough. But sometimes, we come back empty-handed due to low stocks yet we incur other costs such as paying workers , taxes and other expenses,” he added.
Mr Ssembuule asked the government to intervene before the situation gets out of hand.
Mr Anthony Muhwezi, a fisherman at Ssemawundo Landing Site in Bufumira Sub-county, said he currently uses 10 out of the 28 boats he owns due to high fuel prices.
“It does not make sense to deploy all the boats yet the fish is not even enough to meet the cost of fuel. If the current fuel prices remain as they are , I will withdraw all my boats ,” he said.
According to Mr Jackson Baguma, the district fisheries officer, the situation has been exacerbated by some fishermen who have continued to engage in illegal fishing activities.
Illegal fishing involves using less than five-inch fishing nets for Tilapia and less than seven-inch fishing nets for Nile Perch, which results in harvesting of immature fish.
“We sympathise with them [fishermen] because when they are not working, we also don’t get revenue. But voluntary suspension will help fish to replenish, and if they sustain the strike for a month, we will have a surplus of fish in the lake ,” Mr Baguma said.
He said the district generates Shs600m annually from fishing.
Last year , the government had threatened to impose a three-month fishing holiday but dropped the plan after fishermen adhered to good fishing methods.
