A loan agreement for the Artisanal Fisheries Support Project was signed on Monday, December 2 by Septime Martin, the African Development Bank's Resident Representative in Angola, on behalf of the Bank and Job Graça, the Minister of Planning and Territorial Development, representing the Government of Angola.
The objective of the Fisheries Sector Support Project is to increase of incomes of small-scale fishers and traders (mostly women) through marked improvements in fish landing and handling facilities, thereby reducing post-harvest losses and improving quantity and quality of fish landed and traded.
The project will be implemented in coastal communities in four provinces in Angola (Cabinda, Benguela, Kwanza Sul and Bengo) and the direct beneficiaries are the fishing population of over 10,000 at the project sites, including women who constitute 80 per cent of small-scale fish processors and traders. The project will cost UA 25.96 million* (US $39.85 million) and will be implemented over a five-year period.
This project is a follow up of the successfully concluded Artisanal Fisheries Development Project and is aligned both with the Bank Group's corporate strategy and the Government of Angola National Plan aiming to achieve diversification through non-oil private sector led growth to create employment and promote poverty reduction.
*As of December 2013, 1 Unit of Account (UA) = 1.53521 United States Dollars (USD)
