Semi-industrial fishing - meaning and illustration

Characteristics of Semi-industrial fishing

Semi-industrial fishing uses slightly more powerful fishing effort. It is no longer small boats that are used, but specialised fishing vessels such as trawlers. The fishermen are no longer people who have learnt on the job over generations, but real professionals who have learnt the different fishing methods at a fishing academy. Fishing boats (trawlers) vary in size (from about 14m to up to 50 m, depending on the nation) and stay out of port for long periods (over 10 days) and can have crews of up to 20 people...

Varying size of semi-industrial fishing vessels across regions

The main difference between semi-industrial and industrial fishing vessels is that the former involves the use of medium-sized vessels. The key factor, ‘medium-size’, is interpreted differently across fisheries authorities in the world. That said, the size range of semi-industrial fishing vessels varies considerably across regions. What is termed medium-sized in a nation may be classified as a large vessel in another region.
In Ghana, locally built wooden fishing vessels generally range in length from 8 - 37m, with in-board engines of up to 400 hp. Two types of vessels by length operate in this fishery: 8 - 12m are termed small vessels and larger vessels are 12 - 37m.
In Seychelles, the Seychelles Fishing Authority established medium-size vessels ranging from 14 to 23 metres in length, which are used semi-industrial fishing.
In Central Africa, specifically in Cameroon, semi-industrial fishing is carried out by small and/or medium-size vessels ranging from about 14 to 23 metres in length, equipped with fishing gear and fitted out with a mechanised system to operate the fishing gear