The View from Ghana: Fisheries, Food Security, and the Human Cost of a Changing Ocean

Introduction: A Voice from the Front Lines of Food Security

When Professor Wilson Akpalu, the newly appointed Chairman of the Governing Council of Ghana’s Fisheries Commission, took the stage at a NABHI-led side event during the UN Ocean Conference, he provided a crucial, on-the-ground perspective. As a leading economist and director of the Environment for Development Initiative for Ghana, his presentation moved beyond global policy to detail the stark reality of a nation grappling with the convergence of economic pressure, environmental degradation, and a looming food security crisis. His case study on Ghana serves as a powerful microcosm of the challenges facing many coastal nations today.

Setting the Scene: A Nation Reliant on the Sea

To understand the crisis in Ghana, one must first understand the central role fish plays in Ghanaian life. The numbers paint a clear picture of dependency:

• Protein Source: Fish provides an estimated 60% of the animal protein consumed in the country.

• Economic Driver: The broader agricultural sector, which includes fisheries, is the backbone of the economy, with about 45% of Ghanaians depending on it for their livelihood.

• Employment: The fishery sector is a massive employer, with approximately one out of every five people in the active labor force engaged in fishing or fishing-related activities.

For millions, the ocean is not a distant concept; it is the direct source of their next meal and their only paycheck.

The Core Challenge: A Widening Seafood Deficit

Despite this deep reliance, Ghana faces a significant and growing seafood deficit. Professor Akpalu laid out the central problem with startling clarity:

• Import Dependency: Ghana now imports approximately 60% of the fish it consumes, meaning it can only produce 40% of its own needs locally.

• The Nutrition Gap: According to World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, the average Ghanaian should consume about 40 kilograms of fish per year. The current reality is only about half of that, at roughly 20 kilograms per person.

This gap between what is needed and what is available represents a national crisis in nutrition, health, and economic stability.

A Sector in Peril: The Root Causes

Professor Akpalu detailed the complex web of factors driving this decline, a combination of human-induced pressures and environmental shifts.

1. Over-Capitalization and Declining Catches: The fishery is fundamentally over-exploited. There are between 12,000 and 14,000 canoes operating in Ghanaian waters, far exceeding the estimated 8,000-9,000 needed for a sustainable and economically optimal fishery. This has led to a catastrophic decline in productivity, with catch levels per canoe having reduced by more than 40% since the mid-1990s.

2. The Scourge of Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing: Destructive practices are rampant at all levels.

   • Artisanal Fleet: Some small-scale fishers, desperate to survive, resort to illegal methods like using powerful lights to aggregate fish, dynamite fishing, and using dangerously small mesh nets that capture juvenile fish before they can reproduce.

   • Industrial Fleet: A significant problem involves industrial trawlers, licensed to catch bottom-dwelling stocks, illegally targeting small pelagic species like sardines and mackerel. These are the very species reserved for the artisanal fishing communities. A 2017 study estimated that the value of this illegally harvested fish in a single year was between $50 million and $80 million.

3. The Unseen Pressure of Climate Change: Professor Akpalu identified “exogenous factors” beyond the fishers’ control that are making a bad situation worse. These include rising sea temperatures, increasing ocean salinity, and low upwelling events (the process where nutrient-rich deep water rises to the surface), all of which negatively impact fish stocks and yields.

The Human Cost of an Empty Net

These statistics are not just numbers on a spreadsheet; they represent a deepening human crisis with severe consequences:

• Livelihood Collapse: For over 80% of the artisanal fishing communities, fishing is their only source of income. When they cannot catch fish, they have no alternative or supplementary livelihood to fall back on.

• Declining Health: The drop in fish consumption directly translates to lower protein intake, with significant health implications, especially for children and women.

• Multi-Dimensional Poverty: The crisis extends beyond food and income. Professor Akpalu noted that the increasing poverty and desperation in these communities are linked to a rise in other social ills, including gender-based violence and child labor, creating a vicious cycle of hardship.

Conclusion: A Cautionary Note on the Path Forward

As the world discusses a global transition to green energy and sustainable shipping, Professor Akpalu offered a crucial, cautionary perspective from the ground. He warned that while well-intentioned, policies that significantly increase the cost of shipping could have devastating ripple effects in an import-dependent nation like Ghana.

A sharp rise in shipping costs would likely lead to higher food inflation, reduced imports (including essential fish imports), and an escalation of food poverty. The burden would fall heaviest on those already at the margins of society—the poor and food-insecure households a green transition is meant to help protect.

His final message was a powerful reminder for policymakers everywhere: solutions must be designed with a deep understanding of the local context and with the people they are meant to serve at the absolute center of the decision-making process. Otherwise, an attempt to solve one problem may only succeed in creating another, more painful one.