The delay in reopening the fish factory in Funaddoo is negligence by the government towards the fishermen of Thaa atoll, Thaa Atoll Council has said.
Responding to a question from AVAS regarding the delay in re-starting operations at Funaddoo fish factory, Atoll Council Member and Veymandoo Council President Rashwan Adam said the biggest concern of the council is the challenges faced by local fishers due to delay.
"Fishermen from Thaa atoll have to go to Gaafu Alifu Atoll to weigh their catch. The cost of this is very high. We are very concerned about the suffering of the fishers," Rashwan said.
Funaddoo island was previously owned by former Home Minister and former DRP leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali's Funaddoo Tuna Products. The company developed a fish factory on the island and started buying fish in 2004. However, the company stopped its fish purchase operation in 2008. After the company failed to repay the loan taken from BML to develop the factory, the bank put up the island for sale multiple times. The government bought the island and handed over the fish factory operations to MIFCO on March 6 this year.
Rashwan said that under efforts to bring the fish factory back to operation, the Atoll Councilors have so far formally met with the Fisheries Minister, Dr. Hussain Rasheed, and shared the fishermen's concerns.
"The Minister visited Funaddoo with people working in various positions of MIFCO. The discussions with the minister and the Thaa Atoll Council also focused on the challenges faced by the fishermen due to the non-opening of the factory. Fishers from Veymandoo also met with the minister," said Rashwan.
Earlier, MIFCO's CEO and Managing Director Ismail Fawzee told AVAS that the biggest challenge in resuming Funaddoo operation was the current situation of the island's harbor. While the island's harbor has deteriorated beyond use, MIFCO has yet to commence any work to repair the harbor.
According to Fawzee, the harbor can be repaired only if the necessary funds are available. Instead of giving a clear answer when asked what had been done so far to arrange the funds, Fauzi said it was being done in collaboration with the Finance Ministry.
While the Funaddoo factory is still not operational, the main complaint of the fishermen in the atoll is that there is no way to weigh the fish. The atoll council has also noted that this is a matter of great concern to the council.
"Neither the government nor a private company has established a fishing facility in the atoll. At the least, not even a fish weighing boat is available nearby," Rashwan said.
The Fisheries Minister had earlier said the most significant challenge faced in bringing Funaddoo to operation was that the island's harbour being extensively damaged. He said a large repair is required to fix the harbor, and the current state of the harbor causes significant challenges in buying and exporting fish from the island.
The minister said it would cost USD 10.2 million -- MVR 157.3 million to bring the factory back to operational status. This includes the cost of repairing the port and the entire facility, he said. However, there is no way to get the money from the state budget, and the government has therefore handed over the work to MIFCO to secure the funds from banks, he said.
"We have been in consultation with the Finance Ministry to raise funds needed to bring Funaddoo into operation. As per the ministry's recommendation, the funds for the project have not been included in the 2022 budget. The state's current cash flow situation makes it difficult to allocate funds from the state budget. Therefore, we have instructed Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company Limited (MIFCO) to secure the required funds from banks," he had said.
