Fisheries and Aquaculture Development Minister, Emelia Arthur, has revealed that the closed season for inshore fleets will span from July 1 to 31.

However, industrial trawlers will have an extended closure until August 31.

Artisanal fishers have been excluded from this year's closure, as announced by Honourable Emelia Arthur, when she engaged the press on Monday, June 23.

“However, this exemption does not absolve artisanal fishers from complying with other traditional and statutory fishery regulations,” the minister added.

The closed season, the minister noted, is "consistent with Ghana’s national fisheries strategy and best practices for sustainable resource management aimed at replenishment of fish stock in our oceans."

Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies have been instructed to engage fisherfolk and monitor their activities throughout the period.

Also, independent bodies have been tasked to assess the impact of the exemption of artisanal fishermen from their closed season and present their findings to guide future decisions.

The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, in collaboration with the Fisheries Commission, months ago suspended the fishing licences of four industrial trawl vessels for violating Ghana’s fisheries laws.

The affected vessels—Meng Xin 10 (owned by Nassa Co. Ltd.), Florence 2 (owned by Akrafi Fisheries), as well as Long Xiang 607 and Long Xiang 608 (owned by Wannimas Complex Co. Ltd.)—were found guilty of repeated infractions that threaten the sustainability of Ghana’s marine resources.

According to an official statement released on April 1, the vessels engaged in various illegal activities, including unauthorized transshipment, dumping of fish, operating in restricted areas, and harvesting juvenile fish. These actions not only breach Ghana’s Fisheries Act, 2002 (Act 625) and Fisheries Regulations, 2010 (L.I. 1968) but also endanger the livelihoods of coastal fishing communities and undermine marine conservation efforts.

The Ministry emphasized that these violations contribute to the ongoing crisis of Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, which has significantly depleted fish stocks and negatively impacted artisanal fishers. The practice of illegal transshipment, commonly referred to as ‘Saiko,’ remains a major concern, as it disrupts marine governance and contravenes both local and international regulations. Section 132 of Act 625 criminalizes such activities, while Regulation 33(2) of L.I. 1968 strictly prohibits transshipment between industrial vessels and canoes.

Invoking its authority under Sections 76(1) and 76(2) of the Fisheries Act, the Ministry has imposed a 12-month suspension on the licences of the offending vessels, effective April 1, 2025. This measure forms part of broader efforts to enforce compliance and strengthen marine resource management.

Despite continuous education and regulatory interventions, some fishing operators persist in flouting the law. The Ministry reaffirmed its commitment to enforcing stringent measures to protect Ghana’s fisheries sector. It warned all fishing operators—including industrial, semi-industrial, and artisanal fishers—to strictly adhere to the law or risk severe penalties, including further suspensions, licence cancellations, and legal prosecution.