The Cabinet has endorsed the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources’ decision to set the total allowable catch (TAC) for horse mackerel at 290,000 metric tonnes (mt) for the 2023 season.
The ministry’s decision to set the TAC for deep-sea red crab at 4,200mt was also endorsed.
The 2023 fishing season starts on 1 January 2023 to December 2023 according to the Fisheries ministry submission.
The approved horse mackerel TAC for the 2023 season is a decline from the 330,000mt approved for the 2022 fishing season, while the deep-sea red crab TAC amount remained unchanged at 4,200mt to the 2022 season figures.
The Cabinet announcement comes as the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources requested bids for the third auction which closes on December 16, 2022 for 15,000mt of Hake.
In June this year, the government auctioned 1,000mt of Monk Freezer fish and 11,090mt of Horse Mackerel in April.
The latest auction comes as the government raised N$567 million in total from Governmental Objective Fishing Quota auctions of 2021, where six auctions were held with 86,040 metric tonnes auctioned off.
The last auction of 2021 held in December saw 14,000 metric tonnes of hake auctioned off, raising N$158.4 million.
The government resolved two years ago to sell the fishing quotas through a competitive auction system to the highest bidder, as part of efforts to ensure that the country receives the correct value of its fishery resources and fully benefits from its natural resources.
The auctions are being held in line with Section 3(3) of the Marine Resources Act, Act No. 17 of 2000 as amended, which makes provision for the State to utilise or harvest marine resources to advance any socio-economic, cultural or other governmental objectives in the public interest, through an entity or person designated by the Minister, on direction from Cabinet.
