The Circuit Court in Denu, Volta Region, has convicted ten individuals for engaging in illegal fishing practices, in a ruling widely seen as a strong step in Ghana’s fight against destructive and unsustainable exploitation of marine resources.
The case, with reference number CC.277/2025, was heard on Thursday, 31st July 2025, before His Honour Joseph Ofosu Behome. The accused persons – Evans Djanieniiquye Zuatah, Elijah Akrofi Petiafo, Mathias Sappor, Bernard Sappor, Lawoe Odonkor, Edwin Otipeseku, Kwaku Nakan Akorli, Isaiah Okutu, Ebenezer Sappor, and Moses Sagbordzor – all pleaded guilty to the charges.
Each convict was fined 50 penalty units on two counts or, in default, will serve one year’s imprisonment on each count, with sentences running concurrently. The Court further ordered that three fuel generators retrieved from the accused be forfeited to the State. Other illegal fishing materials, including light bulbs, lamp holders, long cables, and seven rubbers, are to be destroyed under supervision. Additionally, GH¢3,000.00, being proceeds from the confiscated fish catch, is to be lodged into the Consolidated Fund.
The proceedings, led by Chief Inspector MacRae Pomevor for the Republic, were conducted with interpretation in both Ewe and English. Complainants Hon. Johnson Agbeko Souzey and Mr. Francis Agbeko Abotsi, Vice Chairman of the Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council (GNCFC) in the Volta Region, were present.
This conviction adds weight to ongoing efforts by the judiciary and enforcement agencies to clamp down on illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. Beyond the immediate penalties, the ruling sends a powerful message that destructive practices that endanger marine life, undermine food security, and erode the livelihoods of artisanal fishers will not be tolerated.
Experts warn that IUU fishing is one of the gravest threats to Ghana’s marine ecosystem, depleting fish stocks and threatening the sustainability of artisanal fishing, a sector that supports millions of Ghanaians. By confiscating and destroying illegal fishing tools, the Court has underscored the urgent need for accountability and deterrence.
The Denu ruling is not only a judicial milestone but also a call to action. Stakeholders stress that Ghana must intensify public education, strengthen surveillance, and enforce stricter penalties if the war against IUU fishing is to be won. Protecting the nation’s marine resources is not just a legal necessity but a moral responsibility to secure the future of coastal communities and generations to come.
