Fisherfolks Force Pause on Vessel Tracking Mandate

A new tracking requirement meant to tighten oversight of Belize’s fishing industry has instead exposed a widening rift between fishers and regulators. Special-licensed stone crab and shark fishers faced an October twenty-second deadline to activate Vessel Monitoring Systems or risk losing their licenses. But after fishing groups pushed back over consultation, costs and enforcement, the Fisheries Department postponed the mandate. Now, both sides must decide what comes next. Shane Williams reports.

 

Shane Williams, Reporting

For fishers, this fight is about much more than installing a tracking device. It is about who makes the rules, who pays the cost and whether the people whose livelihoods are affected get a meaningful say. The Fisheries Department says Belize received forty-five vessel-monitoring devices through a Taiwanese-funded regional pilot project. Officials selected the tightly regulated stone crab and shark fisheries for the program and added the devices as a condition of their special fishing licenses.

 

Adriel Castanedas, Acting Fisheries Administrator, Fisheries Department

“We recently got a donation from the OPESCA body under SECAP, um, which is a donation from the Taiwanese government of forty-five devices between Guatemala and Belize. So Guatemala is getting forty-five, and we’re getting forty-five. And this is gonna be implemented in two important fisheries that we have, which are highly regulated and what we call special license fisheries. And so the VMSs are part of a condition of license that we add to license itself.”

 

The initial message left little room for negotiation: shark and stone crab fishers had until October twenty-second to comply or risk losing their licenses. The San Pedro Fisherfolk Association was among the first groups to challenge the requirement publicly.

 

Jorge Aldana, President, Fishermen Association (File: June 12, 2026)

“You cannot continue to do this to fisherfolks. The generation where fisherfolks would roll over and accept policies have far gone. We have more informed fishers. We know what we want. You cannot just come and dictate to us how our industry must run. If you want us to be a partner in the fishing industry, then you need to come and have a conversation with us.”

 

But the Fisheries Department insists that conversation did take place. Officials say they contacted representatives in Caye Caulker and San Pedro, who were expected to share the information with their members.

 

File: October 15, 2026

Adriel Castanedas, Acting Fisheries Administrator, Fisheries Department–

“They were consulted. We have the Stone Crab Fisher Association in Caye Caulker, and we have a couple fishers in San Pedro and it’s through them that we made that contact. We discussed with them, and they discussed with their members.”

 

That explanation has not satisfied the Caye Caulker Fishers Association, which represents most of the country’s stone crab fishers. Its members argue that a tracking system cannot replace patrols, enforcement or a visible presence at sea. They also question why fishers should carry additional costs when many already face piracy, safety risks and financial losses.

 

Ian Forte, President, Caye Caulker Fishers Association

“The Fisheries is trying to put part of their work on us. We need to have the Fisheries out there. We need to have them patrolling. They need to be doing their enforcement part. And a show of presence, this is gonna deter a lot of thing. The fishers out there, we have, you know, fear for safety. There’s a lot of piracy out there. A lot of fishers struggle with this. A lot of fishers lose investment. So, you know, instead of putting the burden or all the extra costs of these things on fishers, I think the department need to step up, need to play the role, and need to be out there.”

 

And the resistance is spreading. Members of the Southern Fishermen Association, including many of Belize’s shark fishers, rejected the mandate during an October sixteenth meeting with fisheries officials. They are now calling on fishers countrywide to stand together, even when a new policy targets only a small group.

 

On the Phone: Ray Castellanos, Shark Fisher, Mango Creek Association

“We always try to say this in stronger together that we need to be together so that we know that if, if something is coming up, everybody could support one another, even if them try target a smaller group, so that we could advocate for each other and things like this, no, and keep going on, right?”

 

Facing growing opposition, the Fisheries Department has paused the tracking mandate for further consultation, though fishers can still join voluntarily. The larger question remains: can regulators improve monitoring without sidelining fishers or shifting the cost onto them? We will hear next week from Blue Economy C.E.O. Beverly Wade on what the postponement means. Shane Williams for News Five.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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