Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - A six-day Regional workshop on Fish Loss Assessment in Artisanal Fisheries along the coastal and inland countries in Africa opened in Accra on Monday.

The workshop, attended by participants from Nigeria, Cote d'Ivoire, Uganda, Malawi, Benin Chad and Ghana is focusing on the methodologies of assessing fish losses and develop mitigating strategies.

The forum, under the auspices of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization of the (FAO) would also discuss the sustainability of methods for data collection and analysis. Mr. Oloche A. Edache, Assistant Director General for the FAO regional office for Africa said, African countries import over 1.5 million tonnes of fish costing over one (1) billion US dollars yearly.

"A highly significant proportion of Africa's fish capture estimated to be 40 to 50 percent of the total production is sadly lost through post-harvest handling," he said.

Mr. Edache however, noted that, it is imperative that the loss was prevented to enhance food security and the socio-economic well being of fisher folks and African nations in general. He observed that, the problem of post-harvest fish loss in the artisanal sub-sector in Africa had always been a major preoccupation for FAO. He emphasized that, capacity building, technical assistance through programmes and projects, as well as periodic seminars and workshops would help in solving the problems facing the Africa region.