About 90 percent of smoked fish continue to go bad following the closure of most markets in the Greater Accra Region as a result of measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
With their limited storage time, fishmongers at Tema New Town say aside herrings which are often preferred smoked dry, others such as salmon, tuna and mackerel are unable to be preserved for long. To this end, traders in the fish smoking business are consistently running at a loss with the onset of the pandemic.
A visit to the fish processing area at Tema Newtown, the fish smoking sheds which hitherto had a large number of women smoking their fish at the same time now has less than 20 women even with social distancing.
Speaking to GBC-Obonu News at Tema Newtown, the fishmongers said for some time now, about 90 percent of their produce goes bad due to the unavailability of open markets.
They, therefore, appealed to the authorities to make some major markets including that of Ashaiman accessible to consumers to enable them to buy their processed fish.
The President of the Tema Newtown Fishmongers Association, Madam Naomi Korkor Abo, claimed that with the onset of the virus, fishermen were unable to access premix fuel for their fishing expeditions.
She, however, indicated that in collaboration with the leadership of the Tema Canoe Landing Beach, petty traders who ply their wares along the beach have been relocated and dispersed in accordance with the social distancing protocol.
Madam Abo appealed to the government to assist them with some personal protective equipment.
Story filed by Edith Atiaka-Eshun
