Saint Lucia’s fisheries sector has received some much needed aid for the procurement of essential equipment.

On Wednesday March 13, the official Exchange of Notes was held between the Government of Japan and the Government of Saint Lucia for an amount of JPY200, 000, 000 or US$1.8 million, to be specifically targeted toward the fisheries sector. 

Deputy Head of the Mission for Japan, H.E. Mr. Yoshinori Yakabe and Prime Minister Honourable Allen Chastanet officially signed the agreement under the Economic and Social Development Programme.  Also present at the signing was Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives, Honourable Ezechiel Joseph and other Government Officials.

“This grant is presented in order to help enhance Saint Lucia’s fisheries sector,” stated Mr. Yakabe, adding that this is expected to improve the operations of the sector and create a more hygienic environment which is essential for the fishing industry. “This will also assist the Government of Saint Lucia in achieving its policy objectives in food security and nutrition.”

Prime Minister Chastanet thanked the Government of Japan on behalf of the Government and People of Saint Lucia for “their incredible support to Saint Lucia over the last 40 years in the areas of fisheries, disaster risk reduction and education.”

“It is our Government’s intention to focus on improving the ability and the capacity of the fishermen; and to help them identify new methods in order to catch more fish and to get more value for their fish,” stated the Prime Minister, who added that the aim is to secure a larger market share for local fishermen.

“This is a very timely intervention and on behalf of the fishermen of Saint Lucia we want thank you for this assistance,” he noted.

Among the supplies for the local fisheries sector will be platform and countertop digital scales, coolers for fish storage on ice for landing sites, Biogas digester and energy convertor, Longliner vessel – 40ft with sleeping quarters, tuna hooks, desktop computers and printers, tablets for real time data collection, GPS devices, VHF radios, Vessel Monitoring system (VMS) for fishing vessels and main frame with software.