Illegal fishing in Lake Victoria is currently at an alarming rate calling for urgent steps to save the resources, The Officer-in Charge of the Fisheries Department in Kagera region, Ms Monica Kishe, has said.
She noted that pollution and environmental degradation has also led to extinction of more than 400 fish species in Lake Victoria over the last four decades.
According to Ms Kishe, the government
spent over 28bn/- to rehabilitate seven fish landing sites and fish
breeding stations in Muleba, Bukoba Rural and Bukoba Municipality, They
include Nyamukazi, Igabilo, Rushara, Marehe, Kerebe, Iramba and Katembe.
“Joint efforts are needed to preserve
the resources,” she said. Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda told Parliament
in Dodoma recently that during 1999, Nile Perch species in Lake Victoria
decreased by 60 per cent, while between 1999-2007 the fish decreased by
32 per cent and between 2007-2009 the fish decreased by 16 per cent.
He called upon all stakeholders to take a
holistic approach to ensure the resources were managed for the benefit
of future generations.
He noted that there were indications that many fish species in Lake Victoria would become extinct within the next 30 years.
A recent study conducted by Accord Tanzania
revealed that by 2048 there would be a big loss in fish resources in
the lake. “There is increasing fish pressure and environmental pollution
in Lake Victoria.
If it is not well-managed there will be
over-fishing, depletion of resources and loss of socio-economic
benefits,” the premier said.
A recent survey conducted around Lake
Victoria’s beaches by Lake Victoria Environmental Management Programme
(LVEMP) revealed that fish-breeding grounds have been heavily destroyed.
This has negatively affected fish
species with the Nile Perch being the most vulnerable. Use of illegal
fishing gear like gillnets, monofilaments and beach seines is also on
the rise. source In2east Africa
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