“We will have a solution soon” – Pres Ali on Guyana-Suriname fishing licences 

As the Guyana Government continues to push for local fisherfolk to become licensed by Surinamese authorities to operate along the Corentyne River, President Dr Irfaan Ali has issued a call to the business community of the neighbouring country to stand in solidarity with the Guyanese fishermen.

In August 2021, following a high-level meeting in Guyana between President Ali and Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi, the two leaders had issued a joint press statement indicating that the age-old issue of licences for Guyanese fisherfolk to operate in Suriname’s territorial waters would be addressed.
These fishermen operate from the Corentyne coast and have to use the Corentyne to get access to the Atlantic where they get most of their catch. The Corentyne River is considered Surinamese territory.
Currently, the licences are issued to Surinamese businessmen at US$100 per year and rented to the Guyanese fisherfolk at US$3000 annually.
To date, however, the matter remains unresolved.
“I spoke to President Santokhi sometime [Wednesday] afternoon. I spoke to Minister [of Foreign Affairs Albert] Ramdin also [Wednesday afternoon]. They said to me that they are going to send some statistics to show how many licences were issued to Guyanese. Minister Ramdin claimed that a high percentage of licences issued by the Surinamese authorities were issued to Guyanese, so I am waiting for that. And President Santokhi assured me that the remaining issues will be addressed and that we will have a solution soon,” President Ali told reporters during a sideline interview on Wednesday evening.
“We are not wavering on our position. We must have a resolution on this issue,” the Guyanese Head of State affirmed.
Nevertheless, President Ali reminded of the support enjoyed by Surinamese businesses in Guyana and appealed that this be reciprocated for Guyanese fisherfolk.
“We have been asking for these licences for our fisherfolks. Guyana has always been welcoming to investors, we’ve always opened our arms and welcomed investors. We have Surinamese investors…in insurance, financial services, supplies, construction…and we’ve always supported them. And I expect that these investors, too, the Private Sector from Suriname…would also add their voice on this issue to ensure that our fisherfolks are not treated differently,” he posited.
Last week, during an outreach to Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo contended that Guyanese authorities would keep the pressure up on this matter.
“This issue was discussed at the highest level during which an agreement was put in writing. We can’t go higher than that raising this matter and still it is unsolved. More so, you have discrimination against our fishermen because some have complained of harassment and we think that there is a group of people out there who are benefiting enormously from this – the current system, they want it to stay like this…the only thing that we can commit to is keeping the pressure up,” Jagdeo explained.
“Dealing with this means we have to wait on them, we cannot make the decisions because it is another country and it is their waters we are talking about. Never for one minute should the fisherman of this country doubt for one moment where the People’s Progressive Party sympathy is; it is just that we are in the same boat with you. Trying to get this solved for a long time,” the Vice President added.
About 150 boats operate from the Number 66 Fisherman’s Co-op Society thus providing direct employment for about 800 fishermen. Additionally, some 200 persons are employed in providing services which include transportation, fish vending, and repairs to machinery and equipment.
However, Chairman of the Fishing Co-op, Pamashwar Jainarine explained that while they were expecting to get their licence for 2022, fisherfolk were now being further pressured. He said the Surinamese were now demanding that they reduce the size of their vessels.
Currently, most of the boats are 40 feet in length and the fishermen are now being asked to reduce them to 30 feet. Jainarine argued that because of the amount of ice that is needed to store catch during a fishing expedition and the 100 pounds of seine they carry, the suggested smaller boat will not work.
Further, it is now required that the fishermen leave their boats on Suriname’s side of the Corentyne River. However, the Co-op Chairman pointed out that no security was provided to secure the boats and the river current was very strong which could result in them being pulled into the Atlantic.
He explained that each boat was valued over $4 million.
Further, Jainarine related that the middlemen were now collecting back the licences which were rented to the Guyanese fishermen if they did not comply with the new imposed regulations.
Already four licences have been reclaimed.
“If we do this, the co-op will have to close because there are a number of people who depend on this co-op. They will have to sell all of their fish to Suriname and so the fishing industry here will die. They will have to buy their ice in Suriname and that is one of the things we here at the co-op use to generate revenue,” he pointed out.