Fisheries Ministry and Sandals Foundation Partner to Support Fisherfolk in Clarendon

Fishers in Clarendon who were impacted during the passage of Hurricane Beryl on July 3 have received supplies and financial assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining and the Sandals Foundation, to bolster their recovery.

On Thursday (August 22), rolls of fish pot wire were distributed by the Foundation, while the Ministry provided vouchers valued $25,000 each for those who do net fishing.

The recipients were among 150 fishers along Jamaica’s south coast, including St. Elizabeth and Westmoreland, to receive this level of support from the Foundation.

Speaking during the handover ceremony at the Caribbean Coastal Area Management (C-CAM) Foundation Field Station in Salt River, Clarendon, Portfolio Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, indicated that more than 11,000 fishers were affected by the category-four hurricane, pointing out that the sector sustained more than $1 billion in losses.

Against this background, he applauded the Sandals Foundation, noting that, “they would have come out and seen the kind of damage in Portland Cottage and recognise that, without their assistance, it’s going to be hard to get our fishers back out there”.

Mr. Green further stated that the Ministry is looking to intervene at all the fishing beaches that were impacted by the hurricane, pointing out that rehabilitation will be done at Portland Cottage in Clarendon.

“We are not just building back the gear sheds as they were; we want to build them in a more sustainable way so that when another storm comes they can withstand that storm,” he said.

For his part, Minister of Labour and Social Security and Member of Parliament for Clarendon South Eastern, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., expressed gratitude for the much-needed assistance being given to fishers in the area.

“Thank you on behalf of a grateful community and, in particular, our fisherfolk. When we contribute to our fishers, it’s not just giving them support, it is giving a child support to buy textbooks to go to school, it’s giving an elder the support to buy medicine, it is helping an entire community that relies on our fishers,” he said.

Sandals Foundation Executive Director, Heidi Clarke, who spoke with JIS News, explained that “there are so many [fishers] who rely on fish pots, and a lot of the fish pots went missing with the hurricane”.

“These rolls of wire, each of them will make four or five pots; so, it’s a total of 150 fishermen that will benefit along the coast,” she informed

Noting that the marine sector has been “a big thing” for Sandals Foundation, Ms. Clarke said the organisation continues to “recognise it as one of the important sectors for coastal communities”.

She said the initiative is part of a wider Hurricane Beryl relief effort in Jamaica, with some $10 million expended so far.

The Foundation is also undertaking relief in the Eastern Caribbean, where it also operates.

“We are just glad that we can play our part… going out to the… beaches [and] having the conversations with the fishers, because they are the major stakeholders in this and, of course, the Government. We all have to work together, because when everybody comes together it makes things happen quicker,” Ms. Clarke said.