President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has stated that the regular disbursement of funds to fishermen has brought new vigor to the fishing industry. He said this while speaking at a press conference held at the President’s Office on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day.
Speaking about the fishing industry at this press conference, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said that one of the biggest promises in the fishing industry was to pay fishermen within 48 hours for their catch. The President said that when this government took office, about 250 million rufiyaa was owed to fishermen. However, the President said that debt has been paid off, and now fishermen are being paid on a daily basis.
“Since we started paying that money alone, 488 million rufiyaa has now been disbursed to fishermen. In total, we have given 1.59 billion rufiyaa since we took over the government. That includes fuel subsidies,” said President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.
The President said that since they started paying fishermen daily for their catch, the number of boats going out to fish has increased, bringing new vigor to the fishing industry. He also said that investment in the fishing industry has increased, with private parties and crew members starting to build more boats. The President also noted that people who had left fishing boats have now returned.
Furthermore, the President has assured that funds will continue to be disbursed to fishermen in the same manner in the future. The President said that in addition to paying fishermen, the government is also working on many projects to develop this industry. In this regard, the President noted that a lot of work is being done to more than double the cold storage facilities in different parts of the country.
“When we took over, there was a cold storage capacity of 9,500 tons. If the planned work is carried out properly, increasing the cold storage capacity to 25,000 tons is an achievable target. Not a promise, but a target. The promise was to double the capacity. This promise will definitely be fulfilled,” said President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.
