Members of the People’s Majlis on Monday called on the Government to lower the interest rates on loans granted to fishermen and increase the loan repayment periods.
The resolution submitted by the Gaafu Alifu atoll MP Abdulla Jabir at Monday’s sitting of the People’s Majlis was supported by a large number of the MPs who spoke at the meeting.
They agreed that the biggest issue faced by fishermen and boat owners currently was the fact that the interest on their loans was so high and the repayment periods so short.Hassan Afeef, Thaa atoll MP and president of the MDP’s Parliamentary Group, said that decreasing the interest rates and increasing the loan repayment period was something that could be done immediately.
Speaking at Majlis, Jabir said that the problem was the fact that neither the previous administration nor the incumbent Government had paid enough attention to the fisheries industry. He further said that the license to harvest fish in the EEZ was given under an agreement and should be terminated if the foreign companies acted in violation of the agreement.
He had also questioned why there wasn’t a Fisheries Tourism Board like there was a Tourism Promotion Board.
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