The Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday, March 31, 2015, hosted a one day technical meeting chaired by Deputy Commerce Minister Cyril A. Allen II, with the Bureau of National Fisheries (BNF), the National Investment Commission (NIC), Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), National Port Authority (NPA) and the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Development, to discuss the inclusive growth of the Fish and Crustaceans Sector of Liberia.

Minister Allen II, and this team from the Bureau of Trade Services presented a technical draft overview of the Fisheries sector in Liberia which outlined the challenges, prospects and proposed way forward. Liberia`s Fishing Industry has a Potential capacity yield of around 180,000 tons of marine products per annum.

The goal of the meeting was to consolidate policy and technical information as well as to devise a structured sector marketing and value chain development plan to attract at least 2 industrial investors into the sector .The proposed way forward for the sector which was discussed highlights the implementation of Liberia  fisheries sector quick wins projects  which entail the development on-shore processing capacity, inland fishing on a large scale, while supporting mid-sized fishing harbors and storage facilities for semi-industrial boats. Liberia has the potential to produce 40,000 tons per year from inland fishing.

Minister Allen informed the technical team that the sector has the potential to create approximately 300 jobs by 2017 by attracting small local processors to cater to the domestic and regional markets. 

In conclusion, Deputy Minister Allen II, stressed the desire of foreign investors in the fish and crustaceans sector of Liberia and the need for the team to develop a fisheries sector portfolio summary document to attract investors to the sector. The Bureau of National Fisheries presented a draft policy document on the revitalization of the commercial fishing sector in Liberia. It was agreed the technical team would meet on a monthly basis to provide sector updates and coordination. The meeting also discussed the action plan on delivering Liberia fisheries and crustaceans export strategy.