By Sainabou Gassama
Bakau women fish smokers have complained about a poor working environment while called for better working atmosphere.
Ramatoulie Badjie a fish smoker said: “we need conducive environment to do our work, it’s almost a year we don’t have a roof over our heads.”
She said the roof of their smokehouse was destroyed by heavy rains, adding “everything in it is old and even the ovens we are using to smoke our fish are very old and needs to be replaced or repaired if possible.”
According to her, they have been seeking help from the government and other organisations, but they are yet to get any assistance or see anyone to support them.
“We even called on the Fishery Ministry to help us renovate this smokehouse and environment they even came here saw everything and promised to help us. But we have not heard from them since. This is the source of my livelihood, I am a single mother with six children so, I need to work to provide for my children,” she explained.
Apart from smoking fish, Ramatoulie only depends on her two daughters who are giving helping hands in terms of providing for the upkeep of the family “but now they are not working since the discovery of the coronavirus pandemic in the country hence they are working in the hospitality industry,” she lament.
However, she has a son that has completed his secondary school level but couldn’t further his education because of financial problem so he has since joined her in fish smoke.
Other challenges fish smokers are facing according to her is inadequate fish supply from the fishermen and this can warrant them to sit two three days without work.
She disclosed that a basket of fish can cost aD3,700 while customers are expecting them to sale to them at a cheap price without thinking of what could be their profit, “this is real challenging.”
Aisha Jatta, another fish smoker said: “Recently basket of fish costs D7,000.00, a basket of Bonga fish cost D500.00 but now selling to us at D1,500.00.”
In quest for fish she said sometimes they do go to Banjul because it’s difficult to get fish nowadays, as they now buy from the middle men. “When they buy it from the fishermen at D600 (bonga) they will now resell the basketful of the fish to us at D1,500.00 while they will sell a basketful of cat fish to us at D3,000.00,” she added.
However, Mariatou Kujabie said they are trying to repair the smokehouse on their own but couldn’t afford it “because we are not making enough money to enable us does it on our own.”