The Dubique/Stowe Fishermen Association has received $40,000 from Government to facilitate the purchase of an ice machine.
The Hon Member of Parliament for Petite Savanne, Dr Kenneth Darroux was pleased to assist in the facilitation of the purchase of this machine which will significantly enhance the economic livelihood of the fishermen.
He explained that “while Fond St. Jean had been the traditional landing site for fishing in the area over the years, [there has been an] increase in fishermen landing their catch at Stowe.”
Hon Darroux is pleased that this piece of equipment will serve the fishermen of both these areas well.
The association includes fishermen from Grand Bay, Tete Morne and Dubique and was created to assist its members with the purchase of fishing gear and equipment and to solve common problems among its members.
Also speaking at the official handing over ceremony, Acting Chief Fisheries officer Riviere Sebastian noted that the association “has landed in excess of 100,000 pounds of fish over the last year with just a few boats fishing two or three times a week.”
He says the ice machine will be useful in helping the fishermen preserve the quality of their catch.
“Not having an ice machine would lead to you traveling to Roseau every day to buy the ice, and return to your community to put it on your boat to go to sea. That’s a lot of headache so hopefully a lot of that headache will be resolved,” he added.
Executive member of the Dubique/Stowe fishing group Kevin Cooke expressed his thanks for the donation.
The funds were made possible through the Citizenship By Investment Programme.
I lived just there and all I remember coming in to that spot was drugs from other islands? Police shoot many partners there? Fond St. Jean is the real fishermans spot. The most productive fisherman in Grand bay is diving with a spear gun and no boat? Any help is welcome but not to throw pearls to swine? Sorry for the harsh words maybe I am wrong it was quite some time ago that I live there.
Actually, nowhere along that stretch of coast line is safe to anchor a boat off-shore. I suggest they spend some money at Font St. Jean and construct the long-overdue breakwater, and dig out the bay front to create a small harbor and shelter for all the limited number of boats in the GrandBay area. I understand they already have a functioning Co-operative there and facilities to offload, clean and handle fish.
Great initiative.Ensuring proper food quality is crucial.
Don’t be ridiculous. They have big freezers at the fish market in Roseau. Is their fish fresh? No garcon, I make time and buy my fish direct from the boat, sometimes still alive if it comes from a fishpot.
Will Dowasco now provide water pipes to this end of Stowe.
An ice machine with out a water supply is an expensive piece of scrap.
I read earlier that they promised the whole island will be connected by June 2017
Who will pay the light bill for that machine. That takes a lot of electricity you know.
Just now government will pay to have my laundry done. We are getting there little by little.
Why all these negatives. After all, its Dominicans who are benefiting…This is called growing the private sector. Just imaging the econmicc benefit we would enjoy if every fisherman could be properly equip.
But we no longer have a Pte. Savanne a-la the government since the place was evacuated. So why do we still have a Pte.Savanne constituency? Why have they not seen it fit through an act of parliament to make the rest of the area part of the Grand Bay Constituency and finish with that? Matter of fact, time to change to 10 constituencies representative of our 10 parishes? What for them to do in parliament they are not doing.
As far as I am concerned Darroux doh have no par-tat constituency. Matter of fact he has lost every bit of dignity after “allegedly” pulling gun in parliament like a “vieux-neg”.
Assertive like the rod of Moses!
I rather see something like this that benefits the community, than you people just give out hundreds of thousands of dollars to selected comrads that will have no social economic impact. how can 250,000 shared amongst 37 people have any real economical impact.? The price of this ice machine alone should tell you the costs involved in purchasing machinery for your small business.
The “you people” are giving and doing, not taking and talking. and the impact is called starter and encouragement. Money can be a great motivator. In fact money is the fuel that drives any economy.
Some of these decisions can only be described as baffling. I guess the idea of co-operatives is dead. The name of the game is let’s give out free money to all “Red Supporters” who have their hand out and buy more votes to maintain power at all cost. Last week Ms. Daniels asked West Coast villagers to come and collect their share of the $600,000.00 that she had secured for them. Welcome to the next political level in Dominica, where murders occur in broad daylight on buses, rapist walk free, the DPP fights with a sitting Jurist instead of prosecuting crimes and Red Supporters are given everything free, including pampers. Well done Dear Leader. Well done.
Here we go again with more fishing statistics. So two boats fishing just a few times a week equals 100,000 pounds of fish per annum. Divided by 12 that means these two boats are catching approximately 4, 166.5 pounds of fish per week. Why didn’t Drigo present the check? And why not remove the draconian customs import duty and provide a low interest loan to the fishermen through a cooperative so that they could purchase their own ice machine. In so doing, the bank earns money on interest paid which they can use to finance other ventures and the fishermen learn independence. So basically, Labor is paying just a few Red Fishermen to enrich themselves while the rest suffer. Where is Senator Blanchard in these decisions? Isn’t she a trained Economist?
A low-interest loan — that is, for government to let you get a loan and pay less for the use of the money than everyone else has to pay — is a gift, no less than a “free” ice machine. Whenever government sets prices wrong, invisibly people down the line and across the island start to make wrong decisions. Such as to enter the fishing industry, motivated by free stuff, when they don’t really have the skill and equipment to catch and deliver fish at competitive prices. Capital is directed toward the industry whether or not it makes sense. There really is no “gentler” way to do vote-buying so that people don’t pay a price. I do agree with your suggestion to eliminate duties; they are indeed a favor to those already in the industry, against new entrants, driving up the price of the product.
This government and the government ministers seem to believe that being in government and perliamentary representative is only about giving out goodies to constituents.Thet are at their happiest when giving out stuff.Governance is much more than that
Marvelous! that is one ice machine for less than the cost of one Dominican citizenship! CBI is not the problem; the problem is the view of government as grand gift-giver. Ice machines, washrooms, and the key to a new apartment are all free. What could we buy and give away by selling the nature preserves to the Walt Disney Corporation? Mr. Skerrit should wear bells and a plush red suit. I do not see any difference in the opposition. What about self-sufficiency, personal and national?
Why can’t they buy their own machine? Fishing is profitable and fishermen don’t pay tax. Seriously. The fishermen wont agree with me because they are getting something for nothing but it are their votes the government is after. But I’m confused. Is that not Justina Charles’ constituency? What is going on?
PS. That is the first time I hear that Tete Morne has fishermen. So high on that mountain they keeping their boats?
You sound so dumb.. have you ever heard the saying “It is better to be thought of as a fool than to speak and remove all doubt” ? my God!! How uneducated can some of us be…
When you read press reports read them carefully.
This ice machine is for the Stowe fishing depot and landing place, but there are other fishermen who use this landing place who live at Tete Morne and Grand Bay and are members of the co-operative. They commute from their home villages to their boats at Stowe in motor vehicles. Stowe and Fond St. Jean are the two main landing places for fishermen on the south coast. Dr. Darroux represents this part of the south coast where the ice machine is to be used so that is why he is in the picture. I hope this is clear now!
Africo, my …..brother. I know that part of the island very well. Because of the rough sea at Grandbay they can only park a few boats at that hole by Stowe, they calling battery. Tete Morne further from there than Font St. Jean and they don’t need a separate co-operative there. Let them combine with Font. St. Jean, that would make them stronger and make far more sense. They would have economies of scale. Sorry bro. , don’t want to be rude but I’m fed up with these politicians screwing around for no purpose but self gratification.
you want to give farmers road, free fertilizers, free planing materials, duty on vehicle and still get market for them like they are babies. i welcome the assistance to our hard working fishermen. not forgetting thats a very dangerous job.
Fishermen don’t weed, don’t have to use fertilizer. They don’t go to sea every day but only go out when they are short of dry cash. Yes, it can be dangerous but nobody is forcing them to go and fish.
How difficult is it to comprehend the above mentioned…My gosh! try not to sound so illiterate