The Namibian government has invited bids for the sale of 23,708 metric tonnes (mt) of horse mackerel and 5,000 mt of hake in its latest auction of fishing quotas.
The auction, conducted by the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises in collaboration with the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, falls under Section 3(3) of the Marine Resources Act, which allows the state to utilise marine resources for socio-economic and governmental objectives.
“The Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises and the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources hereby jointly invite bidders to bid for 5,000 metric tonnes of hake and 23,708 metric tonnes of horse mackerel, respectively,” the Ministry of Finance said.
The auction follows last year’s sale, in which the government offered 13,584 mt of horse mackerel and 1,000 mt of monkfish to the highest bidders.
Namibia’s Cabinet has approved a total allowable catch (TAC) of 270,000 mt for horse mackerel in the 2024 fishing season. This represents a decline from the 290,000 mt TAC approved in 2023 and 330,000 mt in 2022.
The government has used quota auctions as a revenue-generating mechanism and to allocate fishing rights transparently.
