Africa-Press – Namibia. THE Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Land Reform has said that it had to cancel its fishing quota allocation contract with the company Walu Fishing (Pty) Ltd after the company failed on more than one occasion to pay fishermen.
The company was allocated fishing quotas under the Government Employment Redress Programme, which sought to create employment for fishermen who had lost their jobs due to the fishrot scandal.
Simon Nghipandulwa, Senior Public Relations Officer at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, made these sentiments in response to the allegations made by Erna Loch in a video currently circulating on social media, in which she complained about the withholding of the quota.
“Ms Loch is a former participant in the Government Employment Redress Programme through her company, Walu Fishing Company (Pty) Ltd. However, the company does not hold any fishing rights under the Marine Resources Act and therefore has no legal entitlement to be allocated any fishing quota,” Nghipandulwa said.
He added that Walu Fishing (Pty) Ltd participated in the Government Employment Redress Programme for horse mackerel during the 2024 and 2025 fishing seasons under a special arrangement aimed at safeguarding jobs within the sector.
“During the 2024 season, however, Walu Fishing (Pty) Ltd caused serious disruption in the industry when its employees staged demonstrations after going unpaid for more than three months. Despite these challenges, Government extended additional quota to the company as an extraordinary intervention to enable the payment of workers’ salaries,” Nghipandulwa said.
He added that in the 2025 fishing season, although the company was again allocated a full quota under the Employment Redress Programme for the same 225 employees, it once more failed to pay its workers from October onwards.
“This constituted a clear breach of the agreement. Consequently, Government cancelled the contract with Walu Fishing (Pty) Ltd and is currently pursuing measures to recover the value of the quota granted to the company. For the current 2026 fishing season, the Ministry has no agreement with Walu Fishing (Pty) Ltd. The company is not eligible for any quota allocation, and any suggestion to the contrary is false. The Ministry is further concerned that the company has reportedly been advertising employment opportunities to the public despite having no quota, no fishing rights, and no active agreement with Government, while individuals are allegedly being kept at home without pay,” Nghipandulwa said.
He concluded that the Ministry remains fully accountable and open to scrutiny.
“Decisions regarding the Total Allowable Catch and quota allocations are guided by scientific advice, the Marine Resources Act, and Cabinet decisions, not by pressure, threats, or misinformation. The Ministry will not compromise the sustainability of Namibia’s marine resources or the rights of law-abiding rights holders,” he stressed.
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