Cabinet has approved a total allowable catch (TAC) of 270,000 metric tonnes (mt) for horse mackerel by the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources during the 2024 season.
The approved horse mackerel TAC for 2023 is a decline from 290,000 mt approved for the 2023 season and 330,000 mt approved for the year 2022.
Cabinet also set the TAC for deep-sea red crab at 4,300 mt, an increase from last year’s 4,200 mt.
The government’s decision comes as the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Fisheries earlier this year commenced an open bidding process in March for 30,540 mt of horse mackerel.
Subsequently, in June, the two ministries auctioned 1,000 mt of monk freezer fish and 11,090 mt of horse mackerel in April.
According to trade data from the Namibia Statistics Agency, in September 2023, fish accounted for 12.1% of the country’s total export earnings of N$7.8 billion.
Meanwhile, Fisheries Minister Derek Klazen has announced that the government plans to conduct a study during the 2024-2025 financial year to review the variation of fishing rights.
The planned exercise aims to ensure compliance, fairness, and equity among right holders when altering the duration of their fishing rights.
