Fisheries Management Fund in Healthy Position

Leader of Government Business in the Senate, Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, says the Fisheries Management and Development Fund is “quite healthy”, and at the end of the conch season, it is likely to be close to $64 million.

Speaking in the Senate on October 21, Mrs. Johnson Smith said the amount in the Fund should help to ensure the “sustainability of the fisheries industry”.

The Fund was established to facilitate the sustainable management and development of the sector.

Meanwhile, the Senate gave approval for exporters of conch to pay their licence fees in instalments, by approving a revival Resolution piloted by Senator Johnson Smith, who is also Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

The Resolution updates the Conch (Export Levy) Act 2015, which permits exporters of the commodity to settle the fee arrangement within three months after submitting an application for a health and export licence.

Senator Johnson Smith said extending the payment process would not affect Section 11 of the Act, which makes failure to pay a criminal offence.

The Conch (Export Levy) Act came into effect in 2009, to facilitate the sustainable management and development of the fisheries sector in Jamaica, through the Fund.

A levy is imposed on each pound of conch exported, which the Government recently reduced from US$0.75 to US$0.50, to allow the exporters to expand their businesses and further develop the industry.