Talk to anyone and they will tell you they cannot believe another year has gone by so quickly.
It has been hectic to say the least! As the editor of this journal my objective this year was to meet as many of you as possible. As a result I have visited most towns between Walvis Bay and Richards Bay (some a few times!) and in between there have been a host of local and international workshops, seminars, conferences, functions and legal cases – and that is just the fishing industry! For those who don’t know I also write and edit SA Shipping News.
The highlight of the year has undoubtedly been interviewing Marthinus van Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. Don’t underestimate it - just getting an interview with a Minister of Parliament is no mean feat. The man is busy too so why on earth would he want to spend time with a ‘dreaded journalist’ unless he is serious about the subject! We bring you the interview in these pages.
The Namibian fishing industry is struggling on but the message coming through is a whole lot more positive than it has been in the last two years. The industry might not like the way things are, but it is learning to live with it. Aquaculture development in the country is interesting though – the Namibians have the benefit of a smaller industry than South Africa so they have been able to move along the line of progress a little quicker.
An interesting phenomenon this year has been the increasing confidence of fishermen to speak up. Many had their chance at the fishing imbizos held around the country, associations have been formed to talk with one voice and in this issue we bring you a report on the Small Scale Fishers conference held in the Cape recently. It’s about time that you stand up for your rights – how else will you be heard?
Maritime accidents came under the spotlight recently highlighting the causes and effort that has been applied to increasing safety awareness. A safety day was held to coincide with the launch of the new Cape Town Hout Bay Boat Association but sadly, at the time of going to press, we heard of another fatality at Saldanha Bay.
Finally, on behalf of George Warman Publications, we wish you a very pleasant festive season and a prosperous New Year.


Cover Story
Merlus Seafood Processors in Walvis Bay is one of the most modern and technologically advanced processing plants in southern Africa, designed and built in accordance with the strict HACCP requirements for export to Europe.
One of the features of the plant is a fully automated packing line which deposits the reprocessed sea-frozen fish into Ziploc bags complete with the required labelling for Mercadona, the Spanish supermarket chain.