Kinshasa, 22 November 2020 (ACP).- USD 15 million  for  the implementation of a fisheries and  aquaculture development  plan will soon be financed over three years by Mali's partners, indicated on Friday the representation of the Economic Community of the States de l'West Africa (ECOWAS)  at the end of a two-day meeting  (18 and 19 November) of the sub-sector in Bamako taken up Sunday by the international press

According to our source, the main condition set by the country's Technical and Financial Partners (TFP) for this financing has just been met by the Malian  Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and  Fisheries, according to ECOWAS. The aim was to unify the actors of this sub-sector vital to the Malian economy. "This phase of unification of professionals was the prerequisite for the adoption of an Action Plan over the next three years. And this plan will benefit from a support of 15 million  dollars, or more than  10 billion  CFA francs, from the country's partners," Aboubacar Sidibé, the ECOWAS technical  assistant expert for the subsector, told reporters.  

According to the 4th quarter 2019 report of the National Institute of Statistics (INSAT), Mali's fisheries and  aquaculture subsector  contributed 3.9% of the country's GDP. In the same year, fish production reached 116,000 tons of poisons, placing Mali among the top African countries to produce  freshwater fish.