In January, Uganda’s President Museveni instituted a special Fisheries Protection Unit (FPU) to fight illegal fishing on all major lakes in the country to end the vice that was reaching crisis proportions.
The President’s action was prompted by a petition from a team of fishermen from Kalangala islands, who had accused operatives charged with fighting illegal fishing of selling immature fish to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels in eastern DR Congo.
Indeed, the indiscriminate fishing had generally placed immerse pressure on the fish varieties and threatening their extinction on some lakes. But the anti-illegal fishing crack unit headed by Maj James Nuwagaba, is also producing unintended consequences as the army steps up its patrols of the lakes, forcing fishermen to flee the islands and lake shores as revenues also drop.
The FPU was, among other things, mandated to wipe out all illegal fishing gear, bar illegal fish dealers from transporting immature fish to DR Congo and to educate fishing communities on the effects of illegal fishing.
But six months down the road, the operations conducted by soldiers under FPU have registered some mixed results on Kalangala island district.
Maj Nuwagaba says his team has so far collected illegal fishing gear worth Shs2b, although many unscrupulous fishermen are still in possession of illegal fishing material stashed away in their houses.
AllAfrica