Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Ms Tina Joemat-Pettersson pleased that Marine Living Resources Amendment Bill public hearings have gone well
The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Ms Tina Joemat-Pettersson is pleased to note that the public hearings on the Marine Living Resources Amendment Bill (the MLRA) have been concluded. The public hearings were held by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), and according to reports have gone exceptionally well, with widespread support across the country for the proposed amendments.
The public hearings were held across the country. The process will be concluded at the end of this week when the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature invites the public to make its submissions with respect to the amendments.
“We are one step closer to completing a process that began ten years ago. It’s been both complex and lengthy and we are very pleased to have reached this stage. The hearings gave us an opportunity to listen to the concerns of the fishers, and most encouraging were the calls for transformation in the fishing industry.
Fishers asked that the MLRA be passed and signed into law as soon as possible so that the small scale fisheries policy can be enacted. Our wish is that the NCOP will endorse the MLRA so we can finally realise the wishes of thousands of fisherfolk who rely on this policy,” said Minister Joemat-Pettersson.
