Namibia: Govt Fishermen Fear Job Losses

What the report says

Fishermen in Namibia say they are facing uncertainty as the Government Employment Redress Programme moves toward an end date of 31 October, according to AllAfrica’s republication of a report from The Namibian. Workers at companies including Hangana Seafood and Aluhe Fishing say they have not received clear answers about severance, future jobs or what support they will receive once the programme closes.

The report says the concerns are especially sharp for older workers, including those between 55 and 60, many of whom still support families. Employees quoted in the story said the programme has run for years without a clear long-term benefit for them, and that the planned termination comes at a time when unemployment is already high in Namibia’s fishing sector and beyond.

The Mining, Metal, Maritime and Construction Workers Union has formally objected to the move and is asking the government to pause the termination process until unresolved issues are addressed. In a statement read in Walvis Bay, the union said workers were not meaningfully consulted and called for direct engagement with employees and their representatives. It also raised concerns about retrenchment letters being signed before contracts expire and about the conditions attached to the end of the programme.

According to the article, the programme was launched in late 2020 to help reintegrate more than 2,000 former and retrenched fishermen, including people affected by the 2015 illegal strike and the Fishrot corruption scandal. Government ministries told fishing companies in a 25 September letter that the scheme is unsustainable and should end, while outlining conditions on quotas, employment retention and ex gratia payments. The dispute matters because it affects jobs, compensation and the wider handling of labour redress in Namibia’s fisheries sector.