YANBU, 28 February 2006 — West coast fishermen are complaining that their role as agricultural workers is endangered due to their sorry financial state and the pressures on them to repay loans taken out to buy boats, Al-Madinah daily reported last week.
Naji Al-Ruwaisi, president of the fishermen’s cooperative in Yanbu, blames the Ministry of Transportation and the Saudi Agricultural Bank for exaggerated fees that have added extra burden on fishermen.
Al-Ruwaisi said fishermen are not able to meet their financial obligations and thus there is a general flight of workers in the sector that risks the future viability of the industry as a whole.
They urge the ministry and the agricultural bank to institute measures that would stabilize incomes and cease the practice of not renewing annual boat tags as a penalty for delaying loan repayments.
“Some workers are earning as little as SR30 a day,” said Al-Ruwaisi. “I do not know why they aren’t receiving assistance. The Ministry of Transportation can revoke the licenses of fishermen that are behind in their debt payments. This causes problems.”
Fisherman Naif Al-Refaie told Al-Madinah that he supports a family of 10. He said that he would not be able to renew the tag on his boat because he is behind on his bank loans. This will cut off his only ability to pay.
Sources from the Agricultural Bank said that many fishermen get loans from the bank to buy boats, but not meeting the monthly payments could result not only in the inability to renew boat licenses but also in the seizure of the craft.
