Villagers and others within a containment area are permitted to go out fishing for their livelihood

Villagers and others within a containment area are permitted to go out fishing for their livelihood.

This has been clarified by the Ministry of Commerce, Trade, Tourism and Transport, in consultation with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Fisheries.

They say subsistence fishing is permitted, which limits fishing for the purposes of securing food only.

All subsistence fishers must provide certain information like Captain’s name, Boat Master License Number and Vessel Details like Valid Survey Certification and Registration to the Maritime Surveillance Centre on the toll-free number 1539.

They will also need to adhere to the five maximum persons capacity and their fishing areas must be within the containment areas and a 3km distance from their landing sites.

The Ministry has also emphasised the need to adhere to all health and hygiene protocols, including installing the careFIJI mobile application and keeping the device Bluetooth on at all times, maintain 2-metre social distancing and regular hand washing and sanitisation.