African countries need to address barriers to fish trade on the continent, such as the complexity of rules and regulations governing intra-regional trade, lack of business and marketing skills among fish farmers, high transport costs, and unpredictable trade regimes.
Speaking at the 6th Africa Day of Food and Nutrition Security meeting held in Kampala, Uganda last week, the regional director of WorldFish Africa, Patrick Nalere, commented that the fish trade has been a mainstay of economies in many African countries with the fisheries and aquaculture sector supporting the livelihood of close to 2% of the economically active population in Africa.
“It is clear that despite major initiatives to promote fisheries development and intra-regional trade, sub-Saharan Africa still faces challenges in boosting fish trade, especially intra-regional trade to serve as a catalyst for sustainable economic growth and poverty alleviation,” said Nalere.
