Fishers Encouraged to Take Advantage of NFA Safety at Sea Training

The National Fisheries Authority (NFA) is urging fishers across the island to take advantage of its Safety at Sea Training Programme.

So far, fishers benefit from Safety at Sea Training administered through the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU), and Scuba Diving Open Water Certification with the University of the West Indies (UWI) Marine Lab.

Senior Director of the Capture Fisheries Branch of the Extension Services of the NFA, Shellene Berry, said the programme forms part of a broader mandate to promote the sustainability of the fisheries sector and the resilience of fishers within the fishing industry.

“The NFA encourages persons to grab this opportunity of being properly trained in Safety at Sea and Safe Dive Practices. Too many of our fishers are being lost at sea or dying because of decompression sicknesses, because they are not properly trained. So, we encourage you to take this opportunity. Reach out to your fisheries extension officers within your area and let them know you are interested in being trained,” she said.

Mrs. Berry was speaking at a JIS Think Tank, today (September 23), held at the Agency’s Television Department, 5-9 South Odeon Avenue, in Kingston.

To participate in the programme, which is free of charge, fishers need to be registered and licensed with the NFA, which can be done through extension officers in each parish.

“You do not necessarily have to be literate to participate in the programme. It will not cost you much more than your time and at the end of the day you will be pleased to know that you would have given up that time, four hours a day just to be trained properly and also to receive certification from the Caribbean Maritime University and also the University of the West Indies Open Water PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) Dive. We encourage you to reach out today,” she said.

Funded through the Productivity Incentive Programme of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 2021 for the Programme to be executed over five years.

The cost of the programme’s implementation for this year is $7 million, with cost varying each year based on intake and programme needs.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Berry said the programme aims to train Jamaica’s 20,000 fishers, to improve the standards of operation in the sector and the safety of fishers islandwide.

In addition to certification, at the end of the safety at sea component of the programme fishers are equipped with personal life jackets, GPS instrument, VHF radios, life rings, while for the scuba diving component, persons are issued dive watches.

“There are benefits or awards that are given to the participants as well. It’s really geared towards a new generation of fishers where we want to train them to be safe at sea …one day at a time, little by little,” Mrs. Berry said.

For more information persons can call the National Fisheries Authority at (876) 948-9014.