MEDIA ALERT
To: All Media
Issued by: Masifundise Development Trust
Date: 14 February 2025
Subject: Urgent Call for Infrastructure Support for Aukotowa Small-Scale Fisheries Cooperative
Masifundise strongly supports the Aukotowa Small-Scale Fisheries Cooperative in Port Nolloth in their urgent appeal to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and Environment (DFFE) for immediate infrastructural assistance to facilitate their fishing activities. Specifically, the cooperative is calling for the repurposing of the old John Ovenstone fish factory in Port Nolloth, which is currently vacant and under the ownership of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).
Founded in 2018, the Aukotowa Cooperative is the first small-scale fisheries cooperative in South Africa. Despite being established over five years ago, the cooperative has not received any support in terms of access to the necessary infrastructure and facilities for its operations. Infrastructure support is critical for the cooperative’s success in the following areas:
- Office space to conduct administrative tasks efficiently
- Storage facilities for fishing equipment and related materials
- A training center to empower youth and promote job creation in the community
- A processing facility with tanks to improve fish processing and ensure the business’s sustainability
The cooperative also emphasizes the importance of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed last year between the DFFE and DPWI, which aims to grant small-scale fisheries cooperatives preferential access to public works facilities. This MOA includes access to small fishing harbors, forestry villages, expanded public works programs and government offices and facilities.
Currently, the Aukotowa Cooperative supports over 60 households, but due to the lack of suitable office space, it is forced to conduct administrative tasks from the home of its administrative clerk. Masifundise urges both the DFFE and DPWI to engage directly with the cooperative and find immediate, practical solutions to address this critical issue.
For years, fishers have voiced their need for support to ensure that their hard-earned fishing rights translate into meaningful improvements in their livelihoods and quality of life—support that has yet to materialise.
Masifundise stands in solidarity with the Aukotowa Small-Scale Fisheries Cooperative and calls on the relevant government departments to act swiftly in fulfilling their commitments to support small-scale fisheries in South Africa.
See the official letter from Aukotowa SSF Co-operative below
For further queries contact:
Walter Steenkamp – Chairperson of Aukotowa Fisheries Primary Co-operative Ltd, Port Nolloth
084 087 5199
Nobathembu Ndzengu- Media and Communications
078 593 4230
Jordan Volmink – Media and Communications
079 145 5281
The Department of Fisheries, Forestry and the Environment:
Attention: Minister Dion George per email: jlevendal@dffe.gov.za
Attention: DDG Sue Middleton per email: SMiddleton@dffe.gov.za
Attention: Nthlanhla per email: nmagagula@dffe.gov.za
The Department of Public Works:
Doctor Nomazulu Sibanda per email: Nomazulu.Sibanda@dpw.gov.za
Local Government
Mr. Joseph Cloete per email: pa-mm@richtersveld.gov.za
Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs,
Rural Development and Land Reform;
MEC G.M. Manopole per email:
Other important Stakeholders.
Dear Minister Dion George,
The Board members with the full knowledge of the members of Aukotowa Fisheries is writing this email to you in the hope that someone might be able to assist us.
(We have sent this email previously to the Department Public Works and just added a little background for your benefit as they know this Co-op already for a very long time).
A little background on Aukotowa Fisheries Primary Co-operative Ltd:
Aukotowa Fisheries was established in 2018 as the first Small Scale Fisheries Co-operative along the West Coast of South Africa. The Co-operative received Fishing Rights and Regulations, but no financial support from the Department since 2018.
In order for us to make money from our Permits, we need infrastructure. Since the inception of the Co-operative we have been applying for available buildings at the John Ovenstone factory from Public Works. This was to no avail. We have been sending from pillar to post by the Department Public Works.
Please note that this is a very serious and urgent matter for Aukotowa Fisheries. We are at our wits end. The only answer we get is that renovations are underway and therefore we cannot lease the buildings. But for six years now we have not seen any renovations. We will make a plan to renovate the places we want to utilize.
Please see how many places just in Port Nolloth are standing unattended and have been vandalized and destroyed and are in such a state that no-one could even benefit from it or the proceeds that it could have derived from the lease thereof for the Government and the overall economic growth of the community.
The Co-operative is responsible for 64 households within the community. We host the largest number of members in the Northern Cape and yet we cannot have excess the John Ovenstone Factory where most of our members and families have been working for many years.
At the moment Aukotowa Fisheries must work from the bedroom of the Admin clerk for our Admin duties, this serves as our office at the moment. We also utilize the tanks from private entities, locally and in Cape Town to keep our lobster alive. We export our Lobster via a Marketer to China, but there are always certain times when the product cannot be exported due to lines that are closed and during the China New Year. We would like to expand to Spain and test the waters there for Markets. So that we know that as we land Lobster we have at least two different Countries to send our product to.
Another challenge that we face is that every year we receive our Lobster Permits late. This is a huge problem as we receive the best prices at the start of the Lobster Season (Oct to Mid-November).
We as the Board members ask whom ever is in control of the John Ovenstone factory to assist us with buildings. We need to do our operations and we would like to train the youth and ensure job creation in our community. We need buildings for the following:
- Office,
- Store room for equipment,
- Training center,
- A building for our tanks and processing of fish.
Like we said we understand that the buildings must be renovated and upgraded, but with the help of different businesses who would like to assist us, Aukotowa will be in a position to upgrade and renovate the buildings.
We, as the BOD of Aukotowa Fisheries hope and trust that the relevant people in charge / control will be able to contact us as soon as possible to start discussions and negotiations.
Thanking you in advance.
Sincerely
NB: Pictures attached just to show how terrible the places look when there is no occupants (tenants). We are sending you this with much sadness in our hearts for how the places look today that contributed to the economic injection of this town.
We also include an article in SA News where the Minister BC made a statement about SSF and Public works.
Walter Steenkamp
Chairperson of Aukotowa Fisheries Primary Co – operative Ltd
Port Nolloth
Northern Cape
8280
Mobile: 084 087 5199