Find Fisheries expertise in Ghana

Agriculture, forestry and fishing together contribute 30% of Ghana’s GDP (2010) and about 10% of the country’s population is engaged in various aspects of the fishing industry. Ghana has a coastline of 528 km and a continental shelf of 23,700 km².  About 75% of the total domestic production of fish is consumed locally.

Fish is the most important non-traditional export commodity. Fish and seafood exports from Ghana are made up of tuna (whole, loins and canned), frozen fish (mostly demersal species), shrimps, lobsters, cuttlefish and dried/smoked fish.

The catch profile includes cape hake, grunt, sea bream, tilapia, herring, mackerel, barracuda and tuna. The fishery sector in Ghana includes marine fishery which accounts for more than 80% of the total supply, an inland (fresh water) fishery and an aquaculture fishery as well as related activities in fish storage, preservation, marketing and distribution.

However, recently fresh water fisheries, including aquaculture, are increasingly contributing considerable share of the supply and consumption trends. Within the growing aquaculture industry, fish are produced semi-intensively in ponds as monoculture of tilapia or polyculture of tilapia and catfish.  Ghana’s major inland water bodies are Lake Volta (the largest man-made lake in Africa), Keta Lagoo and Lake Bosonmtwi.

The structure of the marine fishing industry in Ghana is described by the activities of four identifiable groups within the industry, namely the artisanal, semi-industrial (inshore sector), industrial (deep sea) and tuna fleets.  Artisanal fisheries in the coastal areas are nearing their estimated maximum sustained yield, and so offer little potential for expansion. On the other hand tuna fishing, despite significant growth in recent years, still has much room for expansion.

Sustainable catch of tuna is estimated to be 90,000-100,000 tons per year, but only around 36,000 is currently captured (2008). There is also a great deal of potential for the expansion of aquaculture production in the abundance of lakes and rivers in the country.

Important institutions (which are separate from central government) affecting the management of fisheries include, the Volta River Authority, Fisher associations including the National Inland Canoe Fishermen’s Council (NICFC), Ghana National Canoe Fishermen’s Council (GNCFC), and the Ghana National Association of Farmers and Fishermen.

The Department of Fisheries operating within the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, serves to implement the Fisheries Act 625 of 2002, and it main objectives include, amongst others, to increase domestic food supply and create employment opportunities through the fisheries sector, and the ministry hopes that fisheries can help alleviate poverty. However, Ghana has separate management systems for marine fisheries and for Lake Volta fisheries. Together, the two aim to respond to ecological, socio-economic and institutional issues related to the development of the national fishery.