Jamaica’s Agriculture Minister Floyd Green has promised a general review of the Fisheries Act following concerns raised by fishers in Alligator Pond, Manchester.
On Friday, the fishers bemoaned what they said were exorbitant fines for fishing with an expired fishing licence.
Those caught fishing without a valid licence face a fine of up to $3 million based on amended legislation which came into effect in 2015.
Mr. Green said the concerns will be given urgent attention.
“I have asked the National Fisheries Authority to look into the issues that they have raised. They have raised some concerns about time frame in relation to renewing their licences and whether they had applied for a licence prior to them being charged and placed before the court. So we’ll be looking into that and as soon as I have the information I will share that with the country.”
He said the NFA will conduct the review of the Fisheries Act.