Namibia’s Marine Resources Policy.

The Namibia’s Marine Resources Policy is a national policy with a sectoral approach. The main objective of this Policy is to ensure responsible marine fisheries in order to utilize the country's fisheries resources on sustainable basis and ensure their contribution to the country's economy and overall development objectives in the long-run.
Domestic fish consumption will be promoted by encouraging the fishing and fish processing industries to increase the national supply of fish as a healthy food of high nutritional value. Programmes for promotion and supply of fish will be developed to increase fish consumption. Furthermore, the distribution and marketing networks will be supported in collaboration with the private sector.
Responsible marine fisheries management will be developed with a gender-sensitive approach. Women's equitable involvement will be ensured in the marine resources sector. Moreover, access to marine resources will be provided for all relevant stakeholders in an equitable basis.
The responsible and sustainable development and management of all harvesting activities that target marine resources will be promoted and regulated in accordance with international best practices. The legislative, institutional and administrative frameworks will be strengthened by facilitating the communication between all relevant marine resources sector stakeholders, strengthening the coordination between Fishing Industry Associations and the relevant institutions, encouraging the participation in inter-governmental management organizations, and ensuring full cooperation with the regional fisheries management organizations. Data collection systems will be developed for research, management and development in the marine resources sector. The Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources shall be responsible for protecting, monitoring, control and surveillance of all marine living resources within the Exclusive Economic Zone, due to Namibia's sovereign rights over EEZ. In addition, the Ministry shall carry out control over fishing vessels, and processing and handling facilities. In order to ensure maximum sustainable yields, the biomass of each marine resource will be maintained and rebuilt. Fishery management plans will be developed with an ecosystem approach to ensure the conservation of stocks. To this end, these plans will be developed in accordance with the FAO International plan of actions relating to sea birds, sharks, IUU fishing, and fishing capacity. The precautionary principle will be applied in quota allocation to enable stocks to be exploited on a sustainable basis. Management measures will be implemented to protect marine fish stocks and fisheries from the possible negative impacts of other activities impacting on the sea or the seabed, including marine pollution. State support will be provided for domestic catching, processing and marketing of marine resources. The specific needs and economic structure of the fishing industry will be met and improved in consistency with the international trade rules that encourage responsible fisheries practices. The marine resources sector will be integrated into the national economy by encouraging investment in fishing, processing and other relevant industries to maximize its contribution to national income.