The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Mr Senzeni Zokwana, welcomes the green light received on the proposed sea-based Aquaculture Development Zone (ADZ) in Saldanha Bay, Western Cape. This enhances sustainable aquaculture expansion in Saldanha Bay. It will further contribute towards the realisation of the aquaculture aspirations of Operation Phakisa: Oceans Economy in terms of job creation, increased primary production, increased GDP contribution and inclusive growth of the sector.
Aquaculture has been practiced in Saldanha Bay since the 1980's and is considered as one of the primary locations for the culture of key commercial cold water species such as oysters, mussels and salmon. Previous studies indicate that one of the fundamental challenges in realising the potential of aquaculture in Saldanha Bay was the lack of an enabling regulatory environment. The Operation Phakisa: Oceans Economy programme provides the platform to create this environment through increasing access to land and water space as well as improving access to markets and funding. As a result, there is significant interest from industry to expand current operations and to start new projects in the area. To date, fifteen (15) of the 35 registered Operation Phakisa aquaculture projects are located in Saldanha Bay with the majority of these marine aquaculture projects being small medium micro enterprises (SMME's) in the oyster and mussel subsector.
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