Algiers, fisheries: installation of a multisectoral working group to strengthen the social protection of professionals – A multisectoral working group was recently set up at the Ministry of Fisheries and Fishery Productions to promote and extend social protection to all professionals in the sector, an official at the ministry said Tuesday.
Following the last meeting of the Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Fisheries and Fisheries Production has set up a multisectoral working group comprising its representatives and those of the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, the Ministry of Finance and the National Coast Guard Service, as well as representatives of the National Chamber of Fisheries and Aquaculture (on the side of professionals), Mejdoub Benali, in charge of studies and synthesis at the Ministry of Fisheries told APS.
After its first meetings, the multisectoral working group drew up a roadmap aiming essentially at reinforcing the social protection of fishermen, taking into account their professional specificities, and extending it to all fishing trades, according to the official.
The roadmap also aims to encourage fishing professionals to adhere to the social security system and to preserve the safety and integrity of fishermen, especially during bad weather, he added.
The strengthening of the social protection of professionals will allow the sector to perpetuate the profession of fisherman and encourage young people to practice it, he said.
The minister of the sector, Ahmed Badani, had presented during the meeting of the Council of Ministers, chaired last Sunday by the President of the Republic, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, a presentation on the social protection of fisheries professionals.
Speaking at the end of the presentation, the President of the Republic hailed the progress made in the aquaculture sector, urging the minister in charge of the sector to consolidate this achievement and expand it, while allowing deep-sea fishermen to acquire second-hand vessels that are less than five years old.
He enjoined to help the professionals, by all means, to produce what the sector needs, out of concern to protect their profession which ensures jobs and generates an important wealth in the food chain of Algerians.
In this regard, Mr Mejdoub said that
“the sector is betting on the development of large-scale aquaculture, whether marine or freshwater, in addition to the strengthening and development of coastal and artisanal fishing.”
The sector is targeting in particular the development of sea bream culture, of which it controls 100% of the production, he said.
He added that the sector was working to develop deep-sea fishing, recalling the increase in the bluefin tuna quota to 2023 tonnes for the first time, while targeting other varieties of fish, particularly surface fish, in territorial and international waters.
This can only be achieved through the improvement of the working conditions of professionals, the mobilisation of production means and the removal of obstacles on investment projects in the fields of aquaculture and fisheries, in addition to the equipment of fishing ports in terms of maintenance of vessels, fishing shelters, cold rooms and packaging, Mejdoub said.
The official stressed the importance of vocational training in the fisheries sector, and the organisation of operators into cooperatives in order to improve their performance and enable them to acquire equipment.
Algiers, fisheries: installation of a multisectoral working group to strengthen the social protection of professionals
