People can face up to $10,000 in fines if they are found to be catching and or selling undersized fish as the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (M.A.F.) gets strict about undersized catch.

An awareness for the minimum size of fish under the Local Fisheries Regulation 1995 was held at the Apia Fish Market on Wednesday.

A 62-year-old fisherman, Leaso Nailoaa'i Faleupolu from Lufilufi was amongst the fishermen at the launch. He said fish were no longer in abundance when compared to four decades ago and he believes overfishing and undersized catch are reasons behind this.

"I have been fishing for over 40 years now and I have seen a lot of changes with our fish due to overfishing and abusing our marine and fisheries resources," he said.

"That's why I'm really grateful and supportive of this initiative, helping to guide our fishermen with fishing and how to preserve and sustain our marine resources. These new technologies and resources we have now are new but it was the sea that we relied on back in the day.

"We should keep relying on the sea which most families still do and that's why it has always been a concern for me to see small fish on those shelves or at homes on the dining tables and not knowing the long-term impact it will have on the generations to come."

Leaso explained that in the 20th century, people could fish in the shallow coasts in their villages compared to nowadays when fishermen have to go further into the deep.

"We can easily spot the differences back in the days and these days and if this continues to happen then our marine resources will be gone and our children's generations will have a hard life because these are the gifts of life from God which we were given to us to rely on," he added.

In his key remarks, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Laauli Leuatea Schdmidt outlined the importance of the size limits and its implications for the fisheries sector.

He urged the fishermen to take heed of size limit regulation highlighting the punishments put in place for those who breach the regulation.

"We have seen the big changes which we are not used to," he said "The earth's rotation also influenced the climate change, each ocean has its own unique difference and today's world is not the same as it was a 100 years ago.

"We should implement and enforce these size limit regulations so that we can protect our oceans with assurance for generations to come especially with carrying on God's free gift of land given to us.

"However today, we are fishing without limits and fishing unlawfully because of our greed. You are thinking of yourself for the time being disregarding your next generations to come as well as the rest of Samoa's generations to come."

Meanwhile, there will also be another launch of the Regulation on Friday, 7 June 2024 at the Salelologa Market, Savaii where fisheries stakeholders - fishers, village community representatives, fish market vendors, schools and members of the public are invited to witness.

The theme of our awareness campaign is; “Size Limit in Fisheries Matters!” (Fa’atāua le fua fa’atatau o i’a ma figota i faigafaiva!”), underscores the critical role of adhering to size limits in ensuring the long-term health and viability of our marine ecosystems.

"By regulating the size of fish caught, we can safeguard against overfishing and promote sustainable practices that benefit both present and future generations of Samoa," M.A.F. stated.

"Through strategic policies and enforcement measures, we aim to protect our natural heritage while promoting economic growth and food security for all Samoans."