The South African Hake Longline Association (SAHLLA) has received a EUR 50,000 (USD 54,000) grant from the MSC Ocean Stewardship Fund to move the fishery closer to Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification, the fishery announced in a release.
“The path to MSC certification can be very challenging, with most fisheries needing to make significant improvements to their practices before they can meet our standards,” MSC South Africa representative Andrew Gordon said in a release. “The MSC wants to support fisheries that embark on this journey. This is why we created the In-Transition to MSC Program, which is a transparent, independently verified framework that supports fisheries while they make improvements. However, implementing improvements can also be costly, which is why we initiated the Ocean Stewardship Fund with the aim of accelerating progress in sustainable fishing worldwide.”
The grant will fund a two-year program that will provide SAHLLA and its members an opportunity to expedite a suite of actions to make the fishery more sustainable.
“Over the past 10 years, SAHLLA and its members have directed substantial effort and resources towards achieving MSC certification and we are extremely pleased that our commitments have been recognized in this manner. It’s very gratifying to be among only 16 fisheries worldwide to have secured this grant,” SAHLLA Chair Clyde Bodenham said.