FISHERMEN docking at the Abary sluice after fishing in the Atlantic are now benefiting from a spacious concrete tarmac built by the Region Five Administration to help them conduct their operations on site without discomfort during rainy weather.
Regional Engineer Dhanpaul Sukha disclosed that the tarmac was completed to the tune of $9.3M under the administration’s capital programme for Region Five for 2017.
He explained that the regional administration had observed that the sluice at the Abary River mouth had been the docking post for over 35 fishing vessels and was an area where fish vendors and fish exporters would frequent to purchase from fishermen.
“This has been and continues to be a very busy point of sale for catches,” he said.
The administration had observed that the area had usually been in a deplorable state when it rains.
“It got muddy after rainfall. Vehicles going to the docking area either got bogged down or found it impossible to get there, thereby making life difficult for all concerned at these times. The aesthetics of the area during the rainy season had left much to be desired,” he said.
Against this backdrop, the regional administration decided to build the tarmac close to the docking area and requested the required sum of money from Central Government in its 2017 budget.
Veteran fisherman Dyal also known as “Dow” was high in praise of the initiative.
“We have over one hundred fishermen operating from this sluice. This thing is nice. Excellent. Before this when the rain fall we used to have to fetch the fish for a long distance to get to the buyers. This is something we needed for the longest while. All the fishermen here are happy about this project by the region. No complaints,” he said.
