Over 5,000 women have benefited from the Power to the Fishers (PTF) project, executed by Cerath Development Organisation.

The project, which was funded by the European Union is aimed at improving the economic conditions of fishers, particularly fishmongers in some coastal areas of the Western and Central regions.

Sponsored by the European Union, the Power to the Fishers project, was developed to improve the skills of women in the fishing business in areas such as, business management, hygienic fish handling, processing of fish as well as highlight appropriate fishing practices.

Speaking to Joy Business, Manager for the Power to the Fishers project, Derek Adabie said the fishing industry constitutes a significant component of the Ghanaian economy.

He explained that within the fishing industry, the artisanal sector is by far the largest, singularly employing approximately 107,518 fishermen with more than 80 percent of total fisher folks actively involved in fish processing, marketing, and distribution.

“Against this background, the Power to the Fishers project was developed to improve suitable skills among fisher folk and facilitate their access to social protection services, particularly health insurance and credit facilities for increased resilience to climate”, he said.

Touching on the impact of the project, Mr. Adabie said throughout its duration, the Power to the Fishers Project has positively impacted the socio-economic livelihoods of beneficiaries with impacts further extending to their dependents and communities.

He added that the introduction of the project has facilitated the adoption of best fish handling practices across target communities.

He stated that the construction of individual ovens and communal smoking centres, fitted with improved smoking technologies, has boosted the adoption of energy-efficient and environmentally friendly technologies.

“The adoption of the Ahotor oven translates to climate action through significant reductions in fuel wood needs for smoking”.

On her part, the Head and Team Leader, Infrastructure and Sustainable Development at the European Union, Paulina Rozycka said the aim of the EU is to encourage proper and legal fishing practices in Ghana.

Talking about some areas that may be looked at in the future, the Director in charge of West Africa, Cerath Development Organisation, Paa Kofi Osei-Owusu said the his organization may go into other coastal areas to expand the project if it secures the required funding.

“With enough funding, we think that we can extend this project to the Volta region and the Greater Accra region. For even the Western and the Central region, we did the project in some selected communities. So I will say that with funding, we can do more”, he said.

He, however stated that the good stories from the Power to the Fishers Project is laudable and worth mentioning.

“Is this the end of the road for Cerath within Ghana’s fishery sector? Certainly not”, he said.