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Fish landing. (Photo: Magrama)
Increased aid for fleet fishing in Mauritania
SPAIN
Friday, August 31, 2012, 23:50 (GMT + 9)
The Spanish government will allocate EUR 500,000 more than it had originally been planned to aid the fishing industry that was forced to abandon the Mauritanian fishing ground.
The Secretariat General of Fisheries of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Magrama) presented the contents of the two orders for the call for aid to be set for temporary stoppages to the representatives of cephalopod and shellfish fleets, and to entrepreneurs and unions.
These grants will benefit ship owners and crew members affected by the situation of the fisheries agreement between the European Union (EU) and Mauritania.
Although it was originally planned that aid for EUR 6.1 million would be granted, the government decided to raise that amount to EUR 6.6 million.
Shipowners will receive the aid of an amount per day, according to the criteria established in the scales approved by the European Commission (EC) for Spain, calculated for the four months of effective stoppage.
Meanwhile, the crew members will receive EUR 45 per day stopped, estimated for the six months of idleness of the fleet.
The payment of the aid to shipowners or to operators of the vessels will be carried out in two stages: August-September and December-January while the payments to be made to the crew members will take place – generally -- in natural monthly installments.
If the current situation persists within the next six months and the fleet can not resume the fishing activity in Mauritanian fishing ground, the authorities of Magrama will be able to extend the help for a further semester, up to a maximum of 12 months.
The bilateral fisheries agreement affects 37 vessels - 21 cephalopod ships and 16 shellfish boats -- and about 225 crew members.
The sector’s benefit from these grants will be retroactively estimated from 1 August.
Related article:
- Aid for EUR 6.1 million for fleet operating in Mauritania
By Analia Murias
editorial@fis.com
www.fis.com
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