Fisheries authority, province partner to build jetty project

NATIONAL Fisheries Authority (NFA), in partnership with the West New Britain government, will build a jetty in Kimbe for small boats and canoes to provide a central location for fishing in the province.
NFA said in a statement that they had embarked on supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the coastal fisheries provinces with its objective to empower locals through community-based projects such as building jetties and fish markets.
The ground breaking ceremony for the Artisanal Fisheries jetty and Shore Base facilities project was held in Kimbe on Friday.
The jetty project is an initiative of NFA with the support from the West New Britain government and is designed for small craft.
The shore facility will have fish cleaning stations and cold storage facilities for local catch with fuel and ice available.
NFA managing director John Kasu said they were determined to deliver community-based projects that would have an impact on the livelihood of people in coastal areas.
Kasu said the authority was looking at supporting other jetty facilities and various infrastructures proposed by provinces and districts.
He thanked the provincial government for partnering with them to build the jetty and a proper fish market.
“NFA is also looking at building SME hubs in the coastal fishing areas of PNG and WNB could be one of them with the potential it has,” he said.
NFA officer Bolton Towok said the project would also pave way for direct export to overseas markets and was a great opportunity to promote SMEs.
He said NFA would sign a bilateral agreement with China to export seafood directly to them so the building of infrastructure in the provinces would support that initiative.