Somalian companies after Cey-Nor boats

Shirajiv Sirimane

For the first time two Somalian companies would be purchasing four fishing boats from Cey- Nor Sri Lanka to develop their Somali fishing sector.

General Coordinator of Somali Sustainable Fishing Development and Nedsom Foundation, Guled Yusuf told Daily News Business that initially they would be purchasing a multi powered Sashimi boat and subsequently the second one later this year.

Guled Yusuf in Colombo with the boat they purchesed from Cey-Nor

“We hope to sail in this boat in two weeks,” he said. The journey from Colombo to Somalia takes 14 days. Yusuf said that the Somali fishing industry is in its infancy and they

needed better vessels. “We first looked at Philippines but found that it was more viable to purchase boats from Sri Lanka,” he said.

He said that they met the former Chairman of Cey – Nor, Rohan Jayasinghe who offered them the sashimi boat which can even be powered by a sail and could stay longer days in water. Another attraction in the Sri Lankan made Sashimi boat was its ability to store fish in a specially designed freezer.

“Jayasinghe also offered us a comprehensive package where in the future we could build our own boats,” he said. He said that following up this proposal they would not only buy two boats but would also purchase a ‘mould’ so that they could build boats. “In addition we would also hire four Sri Lankan ship building engineers to work on a long term basis in Somalia,” he said.

He said that Somalia is a country with one of the richest fish deposits.

“However due to lack of technology and poaching by huge vessels from other countries Somalia cannot exploit the advantages of fishing. This is why we decided to develop this sector and seek Sri Lankan assistance for it.”

He said that one of the reasons for the birth of Somali pirates is the lack of employment and poverty and these developments would help to put a stop to it.

Meanwhile Ahamed Omar, Managing Director, Harbour Tuna Factory said that although they export fish they do not have a sufficient yield to increase exports. “We have sufficient export orders and are contemplating the purchase of two boats from Cey – Nor,” he added.

He also said that they want to export some of the fish to Sri Lanka and also want to promote trading and tourism between the two countries.