PART I PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Fisheries (Amendment) Regulations, 2009 and shall come into operation on the date of publication.
2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires - “Act” means the Fisheries Act; “approved laboratory” means the laboratory recognised by the Competent Authority, with sufficient level of equipment, technical, personnel, management and environment requirements for the analysis of fish, fishery products and environmental related samples; ““aquaculture establishment” means any premise in which fish, molluscs or crustaceans are raised and kept for breeding, stocking, growing or marketing; “aquaculture products” means all fishery products born or raised in controlled conditions until placed on a market; “beach seine net” means a fishing net designed to hang vertically in the water, when operated the ends are drawn together while the foot rope drags through the floor of water body; “bio toxins” means poisonous substances accumulated by molluscs or fish feeding on plankton containing toxins; “cast net” means a circular net weighted around lower perimeter, it is hand cast to capture fish in shallow waters. “clean sea water” means sea water or brine which is free from microbial contamination, harmful substances or toxic marine plankton, in such quantities as may affect the health or quality of fishery products and which is used under the conditions stated in the Code of Practice for capture and aquaculture products; “closed period” means the period set aside for fisheries conservation depending on the water body and season; “conditioning” means the treatment of live bivalve molluscs from production areas, in purification and depuration centres or in natural sites, to remove sand, mud or slime and toxic substance to preserve or to improve organoleptic qualities and to ensure that they are in a good state of vitality before wrapping or packaging; “contamination” means any biological or chemical agent, foreign matter, or other substances intentionally or accidentally added to food, which may impair food safety or suitability; “Court” means Court of Appeal, High Court, Resident Magistrate Court and District Court; “cured fish” means fish preserved or treated by salt, smoke or any treatment whereby water content of the fish is reduced; “dago fisherman” means a legal fisherman who moves from Mainland Tanzania to Zanzibar or vice versa for the purpose of fishing for a duration of not more than three months consecutively; “Director” means a person responsible for capture fisheries or aquaculture development; “dynamite” means a powerful explosive; “dynamited fish” means a fish killed by a powerful explosive and which has a limp body, ruptured blood vessels in the gills and in the eyes or disintegrated alimentary canal; “fish breeding area” means an area where fish prepare nests, lay eggs and care for them until they hatch and includes an area where fry and juveniles feed, grow; and includes the pathway of anadromous or catadromous fish species; “fish cage” means a structure made of net webbings, weld mesh or any other material placed in a water body for the purpose of growing fish in confinement; “ fish export permit” means an official document issued by an authorized officer to a fish exporter or any other person to allow him export fish or fishery products; “fish landing station” means a designated site along the beach where fishers land and sell their catch; “fish lot” means a quantity of fishery products of a given species which has been subjected to the same treatment and may have come from the same fishing grounds and the same vessel; “fisher folk” means a person or a group of people involved in aquaculture, fishing, net mending, boat building and repair, fish trading, fish processing or any other activity related to artisanal level; “fish market” means an establishment where fish or fishery products are displayed for sale; “fish movement permit” means an official document issued by an authorized officer which allows a fish dealer to move fish or fishery products from one district to another; “genetically modified organisms” means an organism resulted out of either one or more of its gene being modified or manipulated; “gillnet” means a fishing gear made of thread with a standard measurement of twenty six meshes deep and not exceeding ninety meters long, used for capturing fin fish by gill operculum; “health certificate” means an official document issued by Competent Authority for the purpose of attesting the quality and safety of fish and fishery products and conditions under which they were produced; “hermetically sealed container” means a container that is designed and intended to be secure against the entry of hazards; “katuli” means splashing and disturbing water for the purpose of frightening fish in the direction of a net or any other device used for collecting fish; “large scale aquaculture” means a system having a water surface area of five hectares or more for breeding or raising fish; “length of fin fish” in relation to fresh fish means a total length of fish from snout to the longest tip of the tail; “mark buoy” means any conspicuous fixed object for the identification of boundaries in a water body; “mechanically separated fishery product” means the product obtained by removing flesh from fishery products bearing bones or after removing fillets, using mechanical means resulting in the loss or modification of the muscle or flesh fibre structure; “minor waters” means small water bodies which include rivers, natural swamps, dams, ponds and lakes other than Lakes Victoria, Tanganyika and Nyasa; “monitoring procedure” means a planned sequence of observations or measurements of control parameters to assess whether a critical control point is under control; “mtando or Juya la Kojani or Kigumi or Kavogo or any other name as it may be called” means a surrounding net with a float line fitted with floaters and bottom line with sinkers or any other modification, used in shallow water targeting fish living in coral reefs and other shallow water fish and when operated the bottom line touches the sea bed causing damage to the environment; “placing on the market” means the holding of fish or fishery product for the purpose of sale or any other form of transfer or distribution; “poisoned fish” means any fish killed by using poison or fish preserved by using poison; “potable water” means fresh water fit for human consumption, which conforms to Tanzanian Standards for domestic water; “prepared product” means a fishery product which has undergone an operation affecting its anatomical wholeness, such as gutting, heading, slicing, filleting or chopping; “presentation” means the form in which fish or fishery product is marketed; “purification centre” means an approved establishment with tanks fed by naturally clean water or sea water that has been cleaned by appropriate treatment, in which live molluscs are placed for the time necessary to remove contamination; “pyrotechnic substances” means explosive substances such as flashes, flames, fireworks or other propellant driven effects used in the entertainment industry; “rancid fish” means fish having a characteristic and persistent odour of rancid oil or a characteristic flavour of oxidized oils with a distinctive bitter background taste; “rapid test” means a quick and on the spot test carried out by a Competent Authority to determine whether the fish has been poisoned; “ring net” means a surrounding net with a floatline with floaters and bottom leadline with sinkers and rings, through which a purse line is inserted to form a purse during operation. The gear shall be operated in deep waters targeting pelagic schooling fish species where the net shall not touch the floor of the water body and shall be operated in deep water of not less than 50m during the low tide; “risk” means function of the probability of an adverse health effect and the severity of that effect consequential to a hazard; “risk assessment” means a scientifically based process consisting of hazard identification, hazard characterisation, exposure assessment and risk characterisation; “risk communication” means the interactive exchange of information and opinions throughout the risk analysis process in respect to hazards and risks, risk-related factors and risk perceptions, among risk assessors, risk managers, consumers, feed and food businesses, the academic community and other interested parties, including the explanation of risk assessment findings and the basis of risk management decisions; “risk management” means the process, distinct from risk assessment, of weighing policy alternatives in consultation with interested parties, considering risk assessment, other legitimate factors, and if need be, selecting appropriate prevention and control options; “river mouth” means a point where a river empties its water into a major lake, minor water body or sea; “seaweed” means marine plants with no true roots, stem or branches. They have thalloid body shapes and the whole body is able to take nutrients from the surrounding sea water; “semi-intensive aquaculture” means the practice whereby, fish are kept under confinement and the biological, physical and chemical parameters are partially controlled; “serious deficiency” means any conditions or malpractice observed in an establishment that can preclude proper implementation of hygienic practices or obtaining appropriate level of hygiene; “shell” means the hard protective cover of a mollusc or any other aquatic organism; “shell stock” means raw molluscan shellfish with shell on it; “shucked shellfish” means molluscan shellfish that have one or both shells removed; “small scale aquaculture” means the practice of breeding or raising of aquatic organisms within an area not exceeding one hectare; “smoked fish” means fish that has been subjected to direct action of smoke and imparting to it the flavour thereof; “sport fishing” means fishing for leisure and not for sale; “supplementary feeds” means additional feeds other than that found naturally in the water body; “smoked fish” means fish that has been subjected to direct action of smoke and imparting to it the flavour thereof; “tainted fish” means fish, which is rancid or is abnormal because of specified and persistent non characteristic odours or flavours; “TZ as appears in the identification mark of a registered fishing vessel” means Mainland Tanzania; “unregulated fishing” means fishing activities conducted in a manner that is not consistent with or contravenes the conservation and management measures stipulated in the Act and these regulations; “unreported fishing” means fishing activities which have not been reported or have been misreported to the fisheries authority in contravention with the Act and these regulations; “vessel Monitoring System” means a system of tracking movement of a fishing vessel through electronic transmission from a gadget placed on the vessel via satellite to surveillance centre on land; “visible parasite” means a parasite or a group of parasites which has dimension, colour or texture which is clearly distinguishable from fish tissues and can be seen without optical means of magnifying under good light conditions for human vision; “visual inspection” means a non-destructive examination of fish or fishery products without optical means of magnifying under good light conditions for human vision, including candling.
PART II REGISTRATION, LICENSING OF VESSELS, FISHERS AND FISH DEALERS
3. (1) The Director shall, in writing, appoint any person from among the authorized officers to be a licensing officer. (2) Licensing officer shall keep and maintain a register of all fishing vessels in his area of jurisdiction. (3) The register referred to under sub-regulation (2) shall be as prescribed in Form 10 set out in the First Schedule. (4) Notwithstanding sub-regulation (1), every Fisheries Officer in-charge of fisheries sector in the local government authority shall be a Licensing Officer in the respective local government authority.
4. (1) A person who applies for a registration of a fishing vessel shall lodge with the Licensing Officer an application in duplicate, duly completed, in appropriate Form 1 set out in the First Schedule. (2) The Licensing Officer on receipt of the application shall, inspect the vessel for purposes of verifying its compliance. (3) The Licensing Officer shall, subject to receiving of appropriate fees as provided in the Second Schedule and other conditions as may be provided, register the vessel and issue a Certificate of Registration of the Fishing Vessel as prescribed in QA/APP/09 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (4) Notwithstanding sub-regulation (1), every fisher owning a vessel whose overall length is less than 11.0 metres shall lodge his application to the Licensing Officer through a Beach Management Unit, or through a Village Authority. (5) The Beach Management Unit or Village Authority, shall recommend to the Licensing Officer whether to register a fishing vessel or not. (6) A fishing vessel of length more than 11 metres shall not be registered for fishing without prior approval in writing by the Director.
5. (1) A person shall not use, employ, cause or permit any person to use any fishing vessel for fishing purposes unless such a vessel has been registered in accordance with these regulations. (2) A fishing vessel imported into Mainland Tanzania shall not be registered under these regulations, unless it has been issued with a certificate of sea worthiness from the responsible authority.
6. (1) A person shall not possess, use or cause another person to possess or to use fishing vessel propelled by an engine which has no engine manufacturer’s serial number. (2) A person who counterfeits, alters, obliterates, defaces, or in any way tempers with fishing vessel engine manufacturer’s serial number commits an offence under these regulations and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine not less than seven hundred thousand shillings and not exceeding one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than one year or to both.
7. (1) Any Licensing Officer shall assign to every fishing vessel registered with him an identification mark consisting of letters and a number representing the country code and locality within which it is registered. (2) The identification mark to be assigned by a Licensing Officer shall conform to lettering, numbering and particulars as provided in the Third Schedule. (3) A fishing vessel shall be marked permanently and conspicuously by the Licensing Officer at the cost of the owner. (4) An identification mark and name shall be painted on each side of her bows upon a plain background or distinct contrast thereto, and in dark characters on a light background or light characters on a dark background; and each letter and figure thereof, shall be not less than twenty five centimetres high and the contours not less than four centimetres broad. (5) An identification mark other than those prescribed under sub-regulation (4) or under any other written law shall be marked on any registered fishing vessel.
8. (1) The transferor shall, on transfer of ownership of any vessel which has been registered pursuant to these regulations, handover the certificate of registration of such vessel to the person acquiring the vessel and within thirty days from the date of transfer, notify the Licensing Officer in writing of the name, the residential address of the transferee and the date of transfer. (2) Where the person to whom the ownership of any registered vessel is transferred, intends to use it as a fishing vessel, he shall, within thirty days from the date of transfer, forward the certificate of registration of that vessel to the Licensing Officer with whom the vessel is registered, and lodge an application in accordance with Regulation (4). (3) The Licensing Officer shall, on receipt of the certificate and the application referred to in sub-regulation (2), and prescribed fees set out in the Second Schedule, transfer the registration to the name of the person specified as the transferee, forthwith cancel the original certificate and shall issue a new certificate on which he shall enter the personal particulars required to be shown on the certificate of registration relating to the vessel. (4) Where the person to whom the ownership of any registered fishing vessel is transferred does not intend to use it as a fishing vessel, he shall, within thirty days upon such transfer, forward for cancellation the Certificate of Registration relating to such vessel to the Licensing Officer with whom the vessel is registered and shall comply with the provisions of Regulation 9.
9. The owner of the vessel shall, where any circumstances other than a change of ownership occurs in relation to any registered fishing vessel, which affects the accuracy of any particulars entered in respect of that vessel in the register, within thirty days inform the Licensing Officer with whom it has been registered and the Licensing Officer shall without fee, cause the register to be amended accordingly.
10. (1) The Director shall establish a Central Registry of fishing vessels. (2) Every Licensing Officer shall avail without delay to the Central Registry a copy of every entry made in his register and shall, upon application being made to him by any other licensing officer under these Regulations or by any public officer, provide without fees a copy of the entries in his register relating to any specified fishing vessel. (3) Any member of the public may, on showing reasonable cause, and on payment of an appropriate fee as set out in the Second Schedule to these Regulations, access and obtain a copy of entries from the central registry. (4) The Licensing Officer at the Central Registry shall file and keep all copies of such entries furnished in pursuance of these regulations, and shall on request, by any other officer, supply such particulars in relation thereto as may be required. (5) Any cause or matter relating to fishing vessel, licence or permit produced by the Licensing Officer at the Central Registry or other officer acting on his direction shall be prima facie evidence of any matter, fact of thing stated or appearing thereon.
11. (1) A person who intends to apply for a fishing vessel licence shall make sure that the fishing vessel has a valid certificate of sea worthiness issued by Competent Authority responsible for shipping. (2) A fishing vessel with an overall length of above eleven meters or twenty Gross Tonnage shall be licensed after a written approval of the Director. (3) A person shall not use for fishing or cause another person to use a fishing trawler in the territorial waters and inner seas of the Indian Ocean the overall length of which is below eleven meters or above twenty five meters or below twenty Gross Tonnage or above one hundred fifty Gross Tonnage and with the main engine brake horsepower above five hundred. (4) Application for a fishing vessel licence shall be made in duplicate in Form 2(a) set out in the First Schedule. (5) The Licensing Officer shall, for purposes of ascertaining whether or not a vessel complies with the provisions of the Act or of these Regulations, conduct inspection of the vessel before issuing a fishing vessel licence. (6) The inspection report of a fishing vessel shall be submitted in writing as prescribed in Form 2(b) and 2(c) set out in the First Schedule. (7) The Licensing Officer shall, upon receiving an appropriate fee as prescribed in the Second Schedule, issue a Fishing Vessel Licence as prescribed in QA/APP/10 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (8) A person shall not use for fishing purposes any vessel of a class not specified in the Second Schedule, unless such person has a valid licence in respect of such vessel issued in accordance with the Act and these Regulations. (9) A person shall not employ, cause or permit any other person to use a fishing vessel, in contravention of sub-regulation (4) and (5).
12. (1) A fishing vessel licensed under these Regulations shall not proceed on a fishing voyage unless it has- (a) sufficient quantity of food and number of utensils for holding water and food; (b) serviceable horn or trumpet; (c) at least two life rings, one life jacket or any other approved life saving equipment for each crew; and (d) fire extinguishing devices, for purpose of compliance to any other written law. (2) A Licensing Officer shall, where any vessel is detained under sub-regulation (1), before releasing such vessel, require the owner or the master to rectify any observed defects.
13. (1) A person shall not- (a) engage in fishing; (b) collect, possess, transport or hold fish or fishery products for trading purposes; unless he is the holder of a valid licence allowing him to engage in such activity. (2) A person who intends to engage in any of the activities referred to under sub-regulations (1) and (3) shall- (a) make an application in the prescribed Forms 3(a), 3(b) and 3(c) set out in the First Schedule; (b) in case of an applicant for industrial fishing, enclose a valid Certificate of Sea worthiness, monthly production data, export performance report, main engine specifications as per manufacturer’s Certificate, Valid work permits for foreign personnel, names of share holders, Company Directors and their addresses. (3) A person shall not engage in exporting fish or fishery products unless he is the holder of valid licence issued by the Director allowing him to engage in such activity. (4) Any person who contravenes sub-regulation (1) and (3) commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than one year or to both. (5) A non citizen who contravenes sub-regulation (2) commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than three million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than three years or to both. (6) Any person shall not fish in a controlled area, fish breeding areas and critical habitats unless authorized in writing by the Director. (7) A person shall not employ or permit any person to engage in fishing, collecting, storing or export of any type of fish or fishery product in contravention of sub regulations (1), (2) and (3). (8) For the purpose of determining export royalty, fish and fishery products for export shall be graded using the scheme prescribed in Form 24 set out in the First Schedule. (9) A person other than a licensed fisher or fish dealer shall not possess, store fish or fishery products specified in the Fourth without a Certificate of Ownership prescribed in QA/APP/07 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (10) A licence for carrying out an activity under sub-regulations (1), (2) and (3) shall be as prescribed in QA/APP/11 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (11) A person shall not kill, fish, possess, store, export or deal in parts, products or derivatives of any species listed as endangered in any International Convention to which the United Republic of Tanzania is a party. (12) A person shall not fish, collect or posses, store or deal in sea cucumber (beche-der-mer) or shell meat unless he is in possession of a special licence issued to him by the Director under Regulation 21. (13) Any fishing licence issued by a local government authority shall be valid within the jurisdiction of that authority. (14) A non citizen or fish establishment owner shall not carry out collection of fish or fishery products of any kind within Mainland Tanzania. (15) An application for fishing or dealing in fish or fishery products or license for export shall be lodged through the local government authority with jurisdiction over the fishery resource using prescribed Form 3a or 3c. (16) An application for with industrial prawn fishing shall be lodged to the Director by using prescribed Form 3b accompanied with an official covering letter. (17) An application for renewal of export licence shall be enclosed with export performance report as set out in Form 3(d) of the First Schedule. (18) A non-citizen shall, on applying for fishing or dealing or export of fishery products, attach Certificate of Incentives issued by the Authority responsible for investments, a proof on the value of physical investment relevant to fisheries activities, Certificate of Incorporation, Articles of Associations, Feasibility Study, Project Write Up, Work Permit, environmental impact assessment report issued by the Competent Authority responsible for environment. (19) A person shall not import, export, transport, sell or expose for sale, receive, acquire or purchase interstate or foreign commerce any fish or fishery product taken, processed, transported or sold in violation of ratified conventions. (20) Any person who intends to engage in the activity under this regulation shall pay a prescribed fee as set out in the Second Schedule.
14. A person shall not by way of trade, or otherwise deal in fish or fishery products unless a valid licence is issued to him under Business Licensing Act, or is exempted from such a licence in respect of his trade in fish or fishery products under these regulations.
15. Every Licensing Officer shall keep and maintain a register of all fishing vessels licensed within his area of jurisdiction.
16. The Director may, refuse to issue a licence or suspend any licence issued under these regulations for such a period as he may specify, whereas the Licensing Officer shall report his intention to suspend a licence to the Director, who may confirm, vary or reverse the intention of the other Licensing Officer.
17. The Director may cancel or revoke a licence or permit issued or granted under these Regulations on either of the following grounds- (a) that the holder has been convicted of an offence against the Act or any Regulations made there under or has violated or failed to comply with any of the conditions or restrictions imposed on the licence or permit; (b) that the holder has been convicted of an offence involving dishonesty or fraud; (c) that the level of exploitation of any fishery is detrimental to the resource; (d) A licence has been issued contrary to these regulations.
18. (1) Every license issued under these Regulation other than: (a) a sport fishing license issued under sub-regulation (3); (b) special licence issued by the Director, under Regulation 21; and (c) a trawling license for prawns; shall remain in force until the 31st December of the year of issue. (2) Every renewal of fishing licence referred to under sub-regulation (1) shall be done between 1st January and 30th March of every year, and a penalty of fifty percent of the value of the licence fee shall be imposed on any licence issued thereafter. (3) A sport fishing licence may be issued for a fortnight, one month or one year, and such licence shall, unless previously cancelled continue to be valid- (a) in case of a fortnight licence, for a period of fourteen days from the date of issue; (b) in the case of a monthly licence, for a period of thirty days from the date of issue; and (c) in the case of a yearly licence, for a period of one year from the date of issue. (4) A licence issued under these Regulations shall not in any circumstances be transferred.
19. (1) The Director shall attach to any licence issued under these regulations, any conditions, which in his opinion are necessary or expedient for the carrying into effect the objectives and purposes of the Act, provided that the conditions are not inconsistent with the provision of the Act or regulations made there under. (2) Without prejudice the provisions of sub-regulation (1), the Director shall impose conditions as to- (a) the methods used in fishing and disposal of fish or particular species of fish and the use of any equipment, appliance, instrument, fishing gear, damming or any other means; (b) closed periods for fishing, restrict fishing time, specify fishing zones for any fishery; (c) number of fishers; number, size and type of fishing vessels to be engaged in fishing; (d) type and size of fishing gear or pieces of equipment appliance or instrument to be deployed for any purpose in relation to fishing; (e) the minimum length or size of any species of fish which may be captured or killed; (f) require any licensee to submit to the Director or any licensing officer samples of fishery products for laboratory analysis before being marketed; (g) the manner in which any fish or species of fish or any fishery products shall be graded, cured, processed, preserved, marked or marketed; (h) the preparation, purchase, sale or disposal of fish or fishery products including fish processing by-products; and (i) the layout and construction of fish establishment. (3) Any person who contravenes terms or conditions imposed to the licence commits an offence.
20. (1) The Director in consultation with stakeholders shall, based on scientific evidence, determine the duration of prawn fishing season or any other fishery. (2) Any fisher or a fishing company licensed to deploy a trawler for fishing prawns or fin fish shall commence fishing operations at 0600 hours and may engage in fishing until 1800 hours local time after which the trawler shall remain anchored until the next 0600 hours dawn. (3) A prawn trawler shall not operate within two nautical miles from the lowest water mark in the inner waters of the Indian Ocean.
21. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of these Regulations, the Director may grant to any person without fees, a special licence which shall entitle the holder to engage in fishing and do such other things as may be specified therein for- (a) scientific research and museums; (b) export of fish or fishery products not exceeding seven kilogram weight; and (c) educational purposes. (2) A special licence may authorize fishing in any waters and fishing of any kind of species of fish provided that a special licence issued for the supply of food shall not authorize the fishing of any kind of fish declared to be protected under the Act, these Regulations or fishing in any Marine Reserves, Parks or Sanctuary. (3) The Director shall determine the duration of any special licence to be issued.
22. (1) The Licensing Officer may, where any person to whom a licence had been issued to under these Regulations satisfies him that such licence or any copy of it has been lost, destroyed or defaced, and upon presentation of a police lost report and on payment of a fee of thirty percent of the value of the licence, issue to such person a duplicate licence including any particulars endorsed or entered upon the licence and the duplicate licence issued shall have the same effect as the original. (2) Any licence which has been altered without lawful authority or has become defaced or mutilated shall not be deemed to be a valid licence for the purposes of these Regulations.
23. (1) Any person aggrieved by- (a) the suspension or revocation of a licence, permit or authority by the Director; (b) any condition or restriction attached or imposed on a licence; may, within thirty days of communication in writing to him of such refusal, suspension, revocation, condition or restriction, appeal in writing to the Minister. (2) The appellant shall- (a) prepare the petition in duplicate; (b) adequately describe the matter to which the appeal relates; (c) set forth concisely the grounds of objection; (d) sign the petition; and (e) serve the copy to the Director whose decision is being challenged. (3) The Director shall, on receipt of the copy referred to in paragraph (e) of sub-regulation (2) without delay, forward to the Minister a written statement setting out such particulars relating to the subject matter of the appeal together with his own comments as in his opinion are useful towards a just determination of appeal. (4) The decision of the Minister on appeal shall be in writing and shall be communicated to the appellant.
PART III DEVELOPMENT OF THE FISHING INDUSTRY
24. (1) Every investor and stakeholder shall abide by guidelines issued by the Director on areas for developing the fishing industry. (2) The areas of investment shall include but not limited to- (a) marine, brackish and freshwater culture; (b) marine fisheries, including sport fishing and ecotourism; (c) freshwater fisheries; (d) fish establishments; (e) infrastructure including improvement of landing stations and ice plants; (f) boat building (g) ‘dagaa’ fishing; (h) gear technology; and (i) product development and value addition. (3) An Investor shall conduct his business in a manner that ensures sustainability of the fisheries resources, protection and conservation of biodiversity and environment as prescribed by the Fisheries Investment Guidelines and The Environmental Management Act. (4) The Director shall, in consultation with relevant agencies, promote development of the non and under utilized fishery resources by providing technical advice on appropriate technology.
25. (1) Every fishing community shall, in collaboration with relevant village government, form Beach Management Units to provide for Collaborative Fisheries Management for the purposes of managing, protecting and conserving fishery resources, biodiversity and the environment. (2) Any fisher-folk who meets the conditions prescribed in Regulation 133 (4) shall be registered as a member of the Unit. (3) A non citizen shall not be granted membership unless he is in possession of a valid work permit and approval for investment from relevant authorities and shall abide with immigration rules; (4) “Dago” fishers shall not be allowed to be members of Beach Management Unit.
26. (1) The Director shall, in consultation with stakeholders- (a) prepare Sector’s Investment Guidelines; (b) review the investment guidelines as it may deem appropriate. (2) The investor shall submit a feasibility study based on the area of investment as guided by the investment guidelines.
27. The Director shall, in collaboration with Tanzania Fisheries Research Institute, relevant research institutions and other stakeholders, carry out fish stock assessment; biodiversity, environmental, ecological and socio-economic studies as a strategy for effective management of the resources.
28. A person shall not carry out fishing activity by using a prohibited gear for scientific research and training purposes unless authorized by the Director.
PART IV AQUACULTURE DEVELOPMENT
29. (1) A person shall not, unless he has obtained a written permit or other authorization from the Director- (a) import any live fish or aquatic flora into the country; (b) introduce into any water in Mainland Tanzania; blue gill sunfish (Hellioperca marcothira), Chinese carp and other related species or any species of fish not indigenous to Mainland Tanzania or the eggs thereof; (c) export any live fish which are protected in Mainland Tanzania as provided in the Third Schedule; (d) release fish infected, infested or contaminated with pathogen or disease agents from a public facility to the wild or other farms. (2) Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-regulation (1) commits an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to a fine of not less than three million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years or to both.
30. The Director shall collaborate with relevant Ministries, Tanzania Fisheries Research Institute, Universities and other stakeholders in order to generate or share information to ensure sustainable aquaculture practices.
31. (1) A large scale aqua farmer shall, prior to engaging in aquaculture practices, seek permission from the Director using an application Form 7 set out in the First Schedule. (2) Every aquaculture investor shall seek guidance and follow aquaculture guidelines established by the Director. (3) The Director shall issue a permit as prescribed in QA/APP/13 set out in Fifth Schedule to every large scale aqua farmer upon fulfilment of requirements as provided for in these Regulations and guidelines. (4) A person shall not place aquaculture establishments in impervious soils to avoid the ingress of possible pollutants to reduce the risk of contamination. (5) Construction, reconstruction or adoption of a new technology shall not be carried out in aquaculture systems without prior approval of the Competent Authority.
32. An aqua farmer may seek an expert opinion prior to the practice of aquaculture which shall include- (a) soil type and properties; (b) water source, quantity, quality and dynamics; (c) land topography; (d) vegetation and social economic factors; and (e) an approval for use of land and water right for that purpose by a community concerned or any relevant authority.
33. For the purpose of monitoring and control of practices and diseases on large scale aquaculture the following are required- (a) an environmental impact assessment carried out by an approved relevant authority; (b) water used for aquaculture practices shall be free from petroleum products, agro-chemicals leaches, toxic algae, contaminated domestic sewage, and industrial effluent and shall be monitored regularly; (c) no gametes, fish seed or stock replacement shall be used in aqua farm unless have been taken from certified institutions with adequate technology and reliable production facilities; (d) no brood stocks shall be used unless it is held, maintained and managed on clean environment and shall be of a proper breed and drawn from a known source devoid of parasites, diseases or disease outbreaks and malformations; (e) a person shall not be involved in fish and fish seed production or collection unless he obtains an approval from the Competent Authority; (f) every hatchery and aqua farm owner shall produce quality fish feeds or obtain quality fish feed from a certified producer or manufacturer which shall be free from toxins and pollutant, antibiotics and unacceptable levels of anti-oxidants and other additives; (g) every visitor entering into a hatchery premises shall: (i) inform the hatchery management on date and time of visit; (ii) register in a logbook at the entry point prior to entering the premises; (iii) conform to hatchery visit regulations and conditions as provided by the hatchery management. (h) any dead fish or dying fish shall be immediately removed from the growing area to avoid spread of infectious agents and diseases; container used to store dead fish shall be disinfected and secured from scavengers; (i) a person shall not use human waste and pig manure of any form as an input in aquaculture practices; (j) a person shall not use drugs, medicines or chemicals for the treatment of fish diseases and parasite unless has been guided by competent personnel or obtain an approval from the Competent Authorities; (k) the veterinary drug residue in the harvested fish shall not exceed the specified maximum residue limit specified in the National Residue Monitoring Plan for aquaculture; (l) a fish treated with veterinary drugs shall not be sold live or for human consumption unless the Competent Authority has declared in writing that withdrawal period has been observed; (m) an aqua farmer shall not share between or among farms or group of farms harvesting gear(s) and the gear(s) shall not be used for capture fisheries; (n) transportation of aqua products from a farm shall comply with traceability system; (o) every aqua farmer shall collect water, sediment, fish feeds and fish samples for physical, biological and chemical analyses in an accredited laboratory at own cost as required by these regulations and submit the report to the Competent Authority; (p) every aqua farmer shall ensure that the aquaculture establishment has a system- (i) which does not transmit water borne diseases or attract predators; (ii) which facilitates safe handling and disposal of viral, fungi, bacteria and protozoan infected or diseased fish; (iii) whereby used needles and syringes for blood sampling, vaccination and artificial breeding are sterilized and incinerated before disposal; (q) a person shall not import, export or transport live fish unless have complied with the followings- (i) has a valid licence and seek approval from the Competent Authorities; (ii) ensures that the fish is kept under ideal survival conditions and free from any known diseases; (iii) has records on the condition of fish, quantities and type of fish; (iv) ensures that transportation vehicles or vessels and tanks are properly insulated and ventilated to prevent temperature fluctuations, and aerated to prevent oxygen depletion during live fish transportation; (v) ensures that fish are handled in a manner that minimizes skin damage or other trauma and leaves fish out of the water for as little time as possible; (vi) has in place contingency plans to support fish in suitable conditions in transport vessels or vehicles if the transportation is delayed; (vii) manages transportation vehicles and vessels in a manner that discourages or precludes advent transfer of disease causing agents; (viii) ensures that vessels or vehicles or containers used to transport dead fish are not used to move live fish. If this shall be done, proper cleaning and disinfection shall be conducted; and (ix) does not use water from a site that contains fish infected with a waterborne pathogen.
34. (1) An aqua farmer shall not use hormones and beta-agonists or any other similar substances for growth promotion. (2) An aqua farmer shall not use unauthorized substances or substances which are not permitted as prescribed in the National Residue Monitoring Plan for aquaculture.
35. Aquaculture practices shall not be conducted in such a manner as to disrupt the integrity of the environment.
36. (1) A person shall not undertake aquaculture practices in a manner that may adversely obstruct water source or divert water used for other human activities. (2) Every aqua farmer shall obtain water user right and may collaborate with other water users to eliminate conflicts in water use.
37. A person who intends to carry out cage culture in any of the territorial waters shall- (a) fill and submit to the Director an application Form 7 set out in First Schedule; and (b) obtain a permit as prescribed in QA/APP/14 set out in the Fifth Schedule.
38. (1) The Director shall establish and maintain a register of all aqua farmers in the country, which shall contain information prescribed in Form 8 set out in the First Schedule. (2) The Director shall establish an inventory of aquaculture potential areas in the country. (3) Every District Fisheries Officer shall, keep a register of all aqua farmers in his area and submit reports to the Director after every three months.
39. (1) Every large-scale aqua farmer shall be required to submit quarterly progress report to the Director and submit a copy to the respective local government authority. (2) Every large scale aqua farmer shall keep a log-book of activities using Form 21(a) or 21(b) set out in the First Schedule. (3) Every large scale aqua farmer shall keep a record of aquaculture production by using Form 25 set out in the First Schedule.
40. (1) local government authorities shall monitor aquaculture performance in their jurisdiction and report to the Director any event threatening human health, social economic welfare or environmental integrity. (2) The Director shall, where a farm has been confirmed to be affected with any epidemic disease, order destruction of all fish or fishery products in the farm at the expense of the owner.
41. (1) Every aqua farmer shall ensure that- (a) effluents from aqua farm do not cause pollution on other aquatic or terrestrial ecosystem; (b) there are no escapees into another ecosystem; (c) oxidation and sedimentation ponds or tanks are in place; and (d) water quality analysis is conducted as per approved operation manuals and results recorded. (2) A person who contravenes the provision of sub-regulation (1) commits an offence and shall on conviction be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than one year or both.
42. (1) Every large-scale aqua farm shall- (a) not be located in areas close to any discharges, floods or drainage systems of any contaminant or effluents; (b) be provided with adequate water supply and where applicable with oxygen enriching devices; (c) be afforded with equipment and non-corrosive utensils for handling aqua products; (d) have adequate number of changing rooms, wash basins and toilets as prescribed in sub-regulation 14 of Regulation 98; (e) be provided with adequate washing and disinfection facilities; (f) have adequate and appropriately trained personnel in food hygiene disciplines; (g) be afforded with waste treatment facilities; and (h) be provided with supply of potable water. (2) On farm processing, handling, transporting and storing of aqua fish and fishery products shall be carried out under the hygienic conditions specified in these Regulations. (3) Areas where aqua products are handled, prepared and processed shall afford the facilities as prescribed in these Regulations. (4) Packaging of aqua fish and fishery products shall be carried out under hygienic conditions as prescribed under Regulation 107. (5) Any aqua farm shall not use disinfectants in excess of allowable levels. (6) Every fish seed production facility shall be clean and have clearly designated areas for brood stock, breeding, hatching, preparation of live food, nursing, holding young fish to provide suitable survival conditions and shall be audited quarterly by the Competent Authority to ensure ideal hygienic and sanitary conditions. (7) Sorting and grading of fish seeds shall not compromise their health and quality. (8) An aqua farm product shall not be placed in market unless Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system is in place based on risk analysis and shall be reviewed and approved by Competent Authority where a new type of fish culture system is introduced. (9) A person working at an aquaculture facility shall take precautions to prevent cross contamination by observing hygienic conditions as prescribed under Regulation 98. (10) The aquaculture establishment owner shall put in place a written cleaning and disinfections schedule to ensure that all parts of the aquaculture system facilities and equipments are regularly cleaned appropriately and the schedule shall be made available for inspection by the Competent Authority.
43. (1) Any person intending to establish a seaweed farm shall- (a) seek permit from the local government authority; (b) occupy the site with an approval from the relevant authorities; (c) seek permit from an authorized officer of the locality in order to establish such a farm; (d) seek technical advice from an authorized officer; and (e) select a site which is not located in areas close to any discharges, fresh water or discharge systems of any contaminants or effluent as prescribed in these regulations. (2) Seaweed farming shall- (a) be practised according to the prevailing guidelines; (b) not block passage; (c) not be practised in critical habitats. (3) Harvested seaweed shall- (a) be handled hygienically to ensure quality of the product by drying on racks, ropes; and (b) not be stored in non ventilated and moist rooms. (4) Every investor and seaweed farmer shall ensure that the seeds are not infested. (5) Every seaweed farmer shall keep and maintain a log-book for the purpose of recording information by using Form 21(b) as prescribed in the First Schedule.
44. The Director shall issue guidelines for seaweed farming.
45. (1) Any investor may form partnership with local seaweed farmers. (2) Seaweed production and marketing shall be as stipulated in partnership agreements.
46. A person who contravenes the provisions of this part commits an offence.
PART V MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF THE FISHING INDUSTRY
47. (1) A person shall not- (a) use poison to kill or catch fish; (b) posses fish killed by poison; or (c) use poison to kill and preserve fish and fishery products except for training and research purposes. (2) A person who contravenes the provision of sub-regulation (1) commits an offence and on conviction shall be liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than seven years. (3) An Authorised Officer shall, for the purpose of ascertaining whether a fish has been killed by poison- (a) observe the physical characteristics of the poisoned fish or conduct a rapid test and record the results in Form 9 set out in the First Schedule; or (b) take the samples to an approved laboratory for analysis. (4) Results obtained under sub-regulation (3) shall be tendered in court as evidence.
48. (1) A person shall not posses or use with intent of killing fish, fishing or destroy fishery habita- (a) an explosives or explosive material; (b) a dynamite; (c) a substance, or a mixture of substances, in a solid, powder or liquid state, which is capable of producing an explosion; (d) any pyrotechnic substance in a solid or liquid state, or a mixture of such substances, designed to produce an explosion by heat, light, sound, gas or smoke including pyrotechnic substances which do not evolve gases; (e) any article, device, detonator or fuse used to initiate explosion; (f) any plastic explosive; or (g) any other substance or article which the Minister responsible for arms and ammunition may by notice in the Gazette declare to be an explosive. (2) A person shall not possess fish killed by explosives, dynamite or any means provided for under sub-regulation (1). (3) Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub regulations (1) or (2) commits an offence and on conviction shall be liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five years. (4) For the purpose of ascertaining whether a fish has been killed by explosives, the Authorised Officer shall use Form 4 set out in the First Schedule for evidence on dynamited fish.
49. Notwithstanding the provisions of these Regulations, licence, permit or permission shall not be required for fishing by means of any of the following methods- (a) using cloth commonly known as ‘KUTANDA UDUVI’ for fishing ‘uduvi’ Sergestid shrimp (Acetes species) (b) using rod and line or hand line from the beach without using a fishing vessel whether for domestic consumption or sale, except in a declared trout stream or spawning ground.
50. (1) An Authorized Officer shall record fish and fishery products, vessel and its propulsion units, vehicle, implement, and utensils seized using the Seizure Form 12 set out in the First Schedule. (2) Seizure Form 12 shall be filled in triplicate, the first copy of which shall be served to the suspect, the second copy to be produced in court and the third shall be for office use. (3) An Authorized Officer shall fill and issue a compounding offence form for any of the offence compounded as set out in Seventh Schedule after accepting a sum of money not exceeding one hundred thousand shillings using Compounding Offence Form 11 set out in the First Schedule. (4) An Authorised Officer shall, after seizure of perishable fish or fishery products apply within five working days for permission from the Magistrate for disposal of the confiscated fish or fishery products by using Disposal Form 13(a) set out in the First Schedule. (5) An Authorised Officer shall, after seizure of article or thing used for fishing apply for permission from the Magistrate for disposal of the confiscated article or thing using Disposal Form 13(b) as provided in the First Schedule. (6) Notwithstanding sub regulations (4) and (5) an Authorised Officer after being satisfied that the fish, fishery product, aquatic flora or product of aquatic flora is of perishable nature, cause the same to be sold or otherwise disposed off prior to application being made for its forfeiture.
51. A person shall not cause or willingly permit to flow or pass into water any solid, liquid or gaseous matter, or cause water pollution in any lake, river, dam, estuary or seawater.
52. (a) Genetically Modified Organisms or Hybridized Organisms shall not be used or released into the aquatic environment without the written permit from the relevant authorities; (b) Import or export of genetic materials from genetic data bank shall not be done without the written permit from the relevant authorities; (c) A person shall not conduct hybridization, use synthetic and biological hormones, vaccines or any other chemicals and drugs unless has complied with all rules governing their use in order to prevent their abuse and shall be regulated by the relevant competent authorities.
53. A person shall not move infested fish or fishery products from one water body to another;
54. (1) The Director shall after consultations with relevant stakeholders, declare critical habitats in the official Gazette. (2) A person shall not fish in the critical habitats specified in the Third Schedule during close period except by using hand lines with hooks of sizes 8, 9, 10 and 11 without using a fishing vessel or fishing raft. (3) A person shall not wilfully disturb any spawn or spawning fish or any bed, bank or shallow water in which there is any spawn or spawning fish provided that nothing in this regulation shall affect any legal right to take any material or water from such waters. (4) A person shall not use a trawl net in an area which is five hundred meters on each side of an estuary and extending seawards to a distance of two thousand meters measured from the lowest tidal level equidistant from the main channel and when regressed to five hundred meter outwards. (5) A person shall not manufacture, sell, stock, store, possess, use or cause another person to use or possess beach seine net in any lake, dam, river, estuary, reservoir and ocean. (6) A person shall not use fishing gears with mesh-sizes of less than three inches or seventy six millimetres for the purpose of fishing in the river, river mouth areas and bays specified in the Third Schedule during the open fishing period. (7) A person shall not touch, remove, destroy or temper with mark buoy used to demarcate critical habitats in any water body.
55. Notwithstanding anything contained in these Regulations, a person shall not be guilty of an offence under these Regulations by reason only of any act done bona fide in exercise of any power granted under the Act or these Regulations or in continuance of any process lawfully employed before the commencement of these Regulations, if he proves to the satisfaction of the court that he has used all available practicable means to render any substance, matter or thing used by him harmless to fish, spawning grounds or feed.
56. (1) A foreign fishing vessel shall not enter territorial waters for any purposes unless such entry is authorized under- (a) the Act; (b) any other written law; or (c) any treaty or international convention to which the United Republic of Tanzania is a party. (2) A foreign fishing vessel shall not enter the territorial waters with the intention of seeking a fishing licence either by way of change of ownership or change of vessel flag without prior consent in writing by the Director. (3) The Director shall in consultation with the Tanzania Ports Authority designate and publicise Tanzanian ports to which fishing vessels may be permitted to access. (4) The Director shall, subject to the provisions of sub-regulation (3) ensure that every designated port has sufficient capacity to conduct inspections. (5) A fishing vessel that intends to use any of the designated ports for the purpose of landing fish, transhipping catch or for any fisheries related transaction shall provide advance notification and information as prescribed in Form 26 set out in the First Schedule. (6) An Authorised Officer shall carry out inspection as per procedure stipulated in QA/RS/30(a) report the results of inspection as prescribed in QA/RS/30(b) set out in the Sixth Schedule. (7) The Director may deny use of any Tanzanian port for landing, transhipping or processing of fish if the vessel- (a) at the relevant time was engaged or supported illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and trade; (b) has been sighted as being engaged in, or supporting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and trade; (c) has been reported to have engaged or supported illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and trade.
57. A person on board a foreign fishing vessel in territorial waters including members of her crew and persons attached to or employed on such vessel, shall not- (a) prepare to fish; (b) trans-ship any fish; (c) take or process any aquatic flora, unless he is authorized to do so under the Act or Regulations made there under or any other written law or any treaty or international convention to which the United Republic of Tanzania is party; or (d) purchase or obtain bait or any supplies or outfits.
58. (1) A fish establishment owner shall not carry out fishing activities in Lake Victoria. (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-regulation (1) a person shall not- (a) fish, land, possess, process, export or trade in Nile perch or fish locally known as ‘Sangara’ the total length of which is below fifty centimetres and above eight five centimetres; or (b) fish, land, possess, process or trade in Nile tilapia or fish locally known as ‘Sato’ the total length of which is below twenty five centimetres.
59. (1) A person shall not fish, cause to fish, land, possess, collect, process, trade in or export- (a) any lobster whose individual weight is below five hundred grams; (b) any mangrove crab whose individual weight is below five hundred grams; (c) any berried lobster having eggs attached; (d) any octopus whose individual weight is below five hundred grams; (e) other species with external eggs (2) A person shall not harvest, pluck or cause to pluck, possess, collect, process, trade in or export eggs from lobsters, crabs, squids and cuttle fish.
60. A foreign fishing vessel that enters or exits the territorial waters shall fly her National flag and ensure that her registration marks and call sign are clearly visible, and clears its deck of fishing gear, to be stowed in such a manner as to preclude its use.
61. A person shall not fish or posses any fish or any fishery product in a controlled area without lawful excuse.
62. A person shall not, by conducting or navigating any vessel in any manner, destroy or damage any fishing gear lawfully set.
63. A person who uses stakes, posts, buoys or other materials for the purposes of fishing shall remove the same from the waters within forty eight hours of having ceased to use them.
64. (1) A person shall not set any fishing gear in navigation channel, except where the Director having regard to any special circumstances by writing, permits otherwise. (2) Fishing gear shall be so set or used in the manner that leave clear navigational and unobstructed at least one third of the whole breadth of the river or stream, main channel at low tide or tidal stream, to which the gear is set.
65. (1) A person shall not erect, construct, use or maintain in the territorial waters any net or other fishing gear which unduly obstructs the migration of breeding fish. (2) An Authorised Officer may order removal of or cause to be removed any such net or other fishing gears which obstructs the migration of breeding fish.
66. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in these regulations a person shall not- (a) manufacture, import, possess, store, stock, or sell monofilament net; (b) use or cause another person to use monofilament net in all fresh water and marine water fisheries; (c) posses, store, sell, use or cause another person to use harpoon guns, spear guns to fish; (d) use any modified seine net of any kind popularly known as “mtando”, “juya la kojani”, “kavogo” or any name as it may be, to catch fish in any water body; (e) use cast net to catch fish in capture fisheries; (f) manufacture, posses, store, sell, use or cause another person to use for fishing a gill net of mesh size less than three inches or 76.2 millimetres in any fresh water body; (g) manufacture, sell, stock, store and possess beach seine net; (h) use or cause another person to use or possess beach seine net in any water body; (i) use vertical integration of nets in any water body; (j) use for fishing drifting method “tembea” in any freshwater water body; (k) posses, use or cause any person to use for fishing ‘dagaa’ fishnet of mesh size less than eight millimetres in any fresh water body; (l) manufacture, posses, store, sell, use or cause another person to use for fishing a gillnet of more than twenty six meshes deep in Lake Victoria (m) practice or cause another person to practice ‘katuli’ for the purpose of fishing in any water body; (n) carry out any fishing activity using trawl net or otherwise engage in trawling in any fresh water body except for prawn and pelagic fishery in marine waters; (o) disturb fish by skin diving or cause another person to disturb fish in any critical habitat such as fish breeding areas, nesting, resting habitats and fish pathways; (p) stun, harm, kill fish by electrification; (q) use self-contained underwater breathing apparatus or Scuba or compressed air breathing equipment of any kind to capture fish, marine invertebrates, aquatic flora or living marine resources. (r) posses, use or cause another person to use for fishing any gear with mesh sizes below one and a half inches or thirty eight millimetres in marine waters except for “dagaa”. (s) posses, use or cause any person to use for fishing ‘dagaa’ fishnet of mesh size less than ten millimetres in marine waters. (t) posses, use or cause another person to use trawl nets with mesh size of less than two inches or forty five millimetres for fishing prawns in marine waters except for approved research and training purposes; (u) posses on board or use or cause another person to use a trawl net with tickler chain in prawn fishing or any other fishing practice; (v) operate or cause another person to operate a trawl net with more than two nets at any trawling time in any water body; (w) posses, use or cause another person to use any dredging and any gear that scraps the sea bed during fishing in any water body except for approved research and training purposes; (x) use stakes and weirs in rivers, lakes, ocean, estuaries, breeding areas, critical habitats and controlled areas. (2) Self-contained underwater breathing apparatus or Scuba or compressed air breathing equipment may be used for sport fishing, capturing of live aquarium fin fish, training and research purpose only. (3) Notwithstanding sub-regulation (1)(e) a person shall not possess, import, sell, use or cause another person to use for fishing, a gill net of mesh size less than six inches or 152.4 millimetres and nine ply in Lake Victoria except for research and training purposes. (4) A person who contravenes this regulation commits an offence and on conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than two million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of three years or to both.
67. (1) -A person shall not fish, possess, process, offer for sale, market or export marine and fresh water species, any part or any product of the species recognised as being globally or regionally endangered as listed in the Third Schedule. (2) A person shall not fish, possess, process, offer for sale or market marine turtles, dugong, whale sharks, dolphins or any marine species recognized globally or regionally as endangered species listed in the Third Schedule. (3) A person shall not purposely disturb or destroy the feeding, breeding or nesting ground of marine turtles, dugong, whale shark, dolphins or any other freshwater and marine fish species recognised globally or regionally as endangered listed in the Third Schedule. (4) Any person who accidentally captures live marine turtles, dugong, whale shark, dolphins or any other freshwater and marine fish species listed in the Third Schedule recognised globally or regionally as endangered, shall immediately return the animal to the sea, and shall maintain a logbook of all such captures and report the same to a district or any fisheries office.
68. (1) The Director may, by order published in the Gazette, prohibit the harvest of bivalve molluscs from designated areas where such actions is deemed necessary for conservation of fishery resources or the protection of public health; (2) Live bivalve molluscs shall be harvested from areas free from petroleum products, agro-chemicals, toxic algae, contaminated domestic sewage, industrial effluents or any other pollutants and pathogens from other sources. (3) A person who contravenes sub-regulation (2) commits an offence and on conviction shall be liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five years.
69. (1) The Director shall establish and maintain a Vessel Monitoring System popularly known as VMS in the industrial sea fishery. (2) The Director shall appoint from amongst Authorised Officers, experts to manage the day to day functions of the Vessel Monitoring System. (3) The Vessel Monitoring System operation room shall monitor all the movement of the vessels. (4) A fishing vessel shall, while at sea, at all times have all its Vessel Monitoring System gadgets switched on. (5) A captain of any commercial fishing vessel shall abide by all instructions given by the Director. (6) A person other than Authorised Officer shall not enter the Vessel Monitoring System operations room unless authorised. (7) A commercial fishing vessel which has been granted fishing licence in accordance to Regulation 11 shall at all time be equipped with an automatic satellite linked Vessel Monitoring System compatible with the one installed in the office of the Director. (8) Information transmitted shall include the vessel identification mark, latitude, longitude, date, time, course and speed which shall be transmitted all the time. (9) The performance standards of the equipment shall have inter alia the following qualities- (a) be temper proof; (b) be polled by the monitoring room; (c) a two-way messaging capability between the vessel and the monitoring centre; (d) be fully automatic and operational at all times regardless of environmental conditions; (e) provide real time data. (10) The captain shall, in the event of malfunctioning of the Vessel Monitoring System use other means as appropriate including fax, radio to provide the required data or information after every twenty four hours. (11) Vessel Monitoring System data shall, where necessary be admitted as evidence in fisheries offences.
70. (1) The information received and recorded by equipment in the vessel monitoring operation room shall be treated as confidential and may only be revealed- (a) to a person gathering information for criminal proceedings; (b) to a prosecutor or legal representative for criminal proceedings. (2) Any person who obtains information referred to in sub-regulation (1) shall use the information for the purpose concerned and shall not reveal it to any other person unless authorised by the Director. (3) Any person who reveals or uses the information contrary to the provision of sub-regulation (1) commits an offence.
71. (1) The management of a fish and aquaculture establishment shall submit monthly returns. (2) The monthly returns from a fish and aquaculture establishment referred to under sub-regulation (1) shall be submitted by the 10th day of the following month, or at any day time as may be required by the Director using Production Monitoring Form 19 provided in the First Schedule. (3) Monthly production returns of prawn trawlers or any commercial fishers shall be submitted by the 5th day of the following month using Tanzania Prawn-Tow Fishing Log Form 14 as provided in the First Schedule. (4) Daily fish catch data from artisanal fisheries shall be collected by fisheries beach recorder or Beach Management Unit data enumerator using Catch Assessment Survey Form 15 set out in the First Schedule. (5) An Officer in charge of fisheries in the local government authority shall ensure that Catch Assessment Surveys data are collected. (6) An Executive Director of the local government authority shall cause the officer in charge of fisheries in the Authority to submit monthly fisheries statistics to the Director every 10th day of the following month using Fisheries Catch Assessment Survey Form 16. (7) An officer in charge of fisheries in the local government authority shall be required to submit a copy of quarterly, semi annual and annual implementation reports to the Director. (8) The frame survey shall be carried out by using Frame Survey Form 17 and Form 18 set out in the First Schedule. (9) Every fisher shall avail his daily catch data to the Authorized Officer or Beach Management Unit data enumerator.
PART VI FISH AND FISHERY PRODUCTS STANDARDS
72. A Fish Inspector shall have powers to- (a) enter, inspect and search any fish establishment, aquaculture establishment, ice plant, vehicle, vessel, conveyance, cold store, landing station, fish market, auction hall, warehouse and store for cured products in order to ensure compliance with these Regulations; (b) take samples of any fish or fishery product, or fish feed for verifying compliance with standards and specifications; (c) seize and condemn any fish or fishery product that is unfit for human consumption, diseased or otherwise contaminated; (d) seize and condemn any fish feed that is contaminated; (e) destroy or otherwise render harmless any fish or fishery product which he has reasonable grounds to believe is unfit for human consumption, diseased or otherwise contaminated; (f) keep records of seized, condemned and destroyed fish or fishery products and fish feeds; (g) temporarily suspend processing operation in any fish and aquaculture establishment, ice plant, vehicle, vessel, cold store, warehouse and shall immediately inform the Director of such actions; (h) withdraw temporarily an approval number or certificate allocated to fish and aquaculture establishment, ice plant, vehicle, vessel, cold store, warehouse pending decision of the Director; provided that where an approval number allocated to a fish and aquaculture establishment is withdrawn, all operations in the fish and aquaculture establishment to which it relates cease pending rectification of the non-conformities; (i) arrest any person whom he reasonably suspects of having committed or about to commit an offence under these regulations; (j) stop and board for inspection any vehicle or vessel used in transporting fish or fishery products; (k) enter and search in the presence of Police or Justice of Peace any residential premises, building or any place used or reasonably suspected of being used, either wholly or in part, for the manufacture of any illegal fishing gear, any fishery product or any product of aquatic flora in respect of which he has reason to believe an offence under the Act or these regulations has been committed or is about to be committed; (l) issue a Health Certificate or Sanitary Certificate; (m) carry out regular inspections, auditing and monitoring activities carried out in the fish establishment, aquaculture establishment, fish landing stations, fish transportation vehicles and vessels, fish markets and auction halls; (n) advise the Director on- (i) the approval of fish and aquaculture establishment, landing stations and fish transportation vehicles and vessels as provided under these Regulations; (ii) temporary or permanent closure of any establishment which does not comply with standards provided under these Regulations; and (iii) any other matter necessary for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of these Regulations. (o) prepare inspection reports to be submitted to the Director and respective establishments.
73. The Director may recall any consignment of fish or fishery products contravening the provisions of these regulations at the cost of the exporter.
74. A Fish Inspector or an Authorized Officer shall, where any fish and aquaculture establishment, by means of its condition, construction or disrepair, is in such a manner that any fish or fishery products in the establishment may be exposed to contamination, deterioration or become dirty, serve a notice in writing to the person who owns or operates the establishments requiring him- (a) to institute agreed corrective actions within specified time; or (b) not to use the establishment until the conditions stated in such notice have been complied with.
75. (1) A person shall not place on the market or export a batch or consignment of fish or fishery products without a Health Certificate or Sanitary Certificate issued by a Fish Inspector in respect of the batch or consignment. (2) A Health Certificate prescribed in QA/APP/02 set out in the Fifth Schedule shall be issued by the Competent Authority for every fish and fishery products exported based on the market requirement. (3) A Sanitary Certificate shall be as prescribed in QA/APP/03 set out in the Fifth Schedule.
76. (1) A fish inspector may refuse to issue a Health Certificate or Sanitary Certificate in respect of any consignment or batch of fish or fishery products if- (a) the consignment or batch in respect of which the certificate is sought, is contaminated with micro-organisms, physical or chemical substances that are potentially injurious to human health; (b) the fish and aquaculture establishment has not complied with the sanitary requirements set out in these Regulations; (c) the fish and aquaculture establishment has not complied with its approved Quality Management Program; (d) contamination exceeds the relevant National standards; (e) packaging and labelling do not comply with these Regulations; or (f) the fish and aquaculture establishment has not complied with any other condition prescribed by the Competent Authority. (2) Where the Fish Inspector refuses to issue a Health Certificate or Sanitary Certificate under this Regulation, he shall immediately give reasons for each refusal in writing to the applicant. (3) The Fish Inspector shall, for the purpose of ascertaining the safety and quality, take samples for analysis in an approved laboratory. (4) The Fish Inspector shall observe the Standard Operating Procedures for sampling and analysis of samples provided in accordance with these Regulations.
77. (1) The management of fish and aquaculture establishment shall, before constructing, reconstructing or adapting an establishment, make an application in the prescribed Form 5 and Form 7 set out in the First Schedule to the Director for his approval. (2) The application under sub-regulation (1) shall contain- (a) the full name, physical, postal and electronic address of the fish establishment, managers, directors and shareholders; (b) the designation and composition of finished products; (c) the number of employees; (d) the production and storage capacities; (e) source of ice or own ice production capacity; and (f) chiller capacity. (3) After receiving the application form, the competent authority shall examine the application and proceed with on site verification. (4) The applicant shall, after on site verification, submit- (a) the establishment architectural plan, at a minimum scale of 1:200, indicating- (i) the establishment facilities and their respective utilization, with a clear separation between clean and dirty areas; (ii) the flow of products fit for human consumption and of the products not fit for human consumption; (iii) movement of personnel, utensils and ice; (iv) the equipment lay-out and its respective utilization; (v) the sanitary facilities such as foot dips, shower rooms, changing rooms and toilets; (vi) the establishment hand wash basins and taps; (vii) the water reticulation map including water outlets or taps serially numbered on the map; (viii) the waste water disposal system; (ix) the soil waste disposal system; (x) the system for handling and storage of by-products and disposal of solid waste; and (xi) the pest control system; (b) Good Manufacturing Practice, Good Hygiene Practice and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point manuals; and (c) an environmental impact assessment report approved by the relevant authority. (5) The Director shall, after examining the application and its accompanying documents, and being satisfied that the applicant has complied with requirements of these Regulations, grant approval for the construction of the establishment. (6) The establishment shall, depending on the type of product, be inspected in accordance with reference standard as prescribed in QA/RS/01, QA/RS/02, QA/RS/19, QA/RS/22 and QA/RS/28 and be ranked using QA/RS/17 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (7) Where it appears from the on site visit that the establishment meets the infrastructure and equipment requirements, the Competent Authority may grant Conditional Approval. (8) The Competent Authority shall, where it appears from a new on site visit carried out within three months of granting conditional approval that the establishment meets requirements of these regulations, grant full approval. (9) The Competent Authority shall, where it is satisfied that the establishment issued with conditional approval has made clear progress but does not meet requirement to be granted full approval, prolong the conditional approval for a period not exceeding six months. (10) The Competent Authority shall issue approval number to an approved establishment, including those with conditional approval; the codes may be added to indicate the type of fishery products manufactured. (11) The establishment that conforms to the relevant requirements shall be under supervision of the Competent Authority during operations for a period of not less than three months with reinforced sampling until the Competent Authority is satisfied with the result obtained, the establishment shall be issued with an Approval Certificate as prescribed in QA/APP/01 set out in the Fifth Schedule specifying activities for that establishment which shall be valid from the date of issue and expires at 31st December of the year issued. (12) The Competent Authority shall update a list of approved establishments when deemed necessary and inform stakeholders accordingly. (13) The application shall be renewed as often as necessary after any major changes in the infrastructure, equipment, handling or processing procedures or after changes in the types and nature of the finished products. (14) Certified establishments shall be regularly inspected by fish inspectors to ensure that sanitary requirements are complied with and that the establishment applies proper handling and manufacturing practices. (15) Routine inspection shall be carried out in accordance with reference standards prescribed in QA/RS/03, QA/RS/04, QA/RS/05, QA/RS/18 and QA/RS/29 after every one month and as the case may be, and shall be ranked using QA/RS/17 as provided in the Sixth Schedule. (16) Auditing of fish establishment and out post stations shall be carried out in accordance with reference standard set out in the sixth schedule QA/RS/20, QA/RS/21, QA/RS/24 and QA/RS/26 after every three months and the establishment shall be ranked using QA/RS/17 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (17) Where the Competent Authority identifies serious deficiencies or has to stop production at an establishment repeatedly and the fish establishment is not able to provide adequate guarantee regarding future production, the Competent Authority shall initiate procedures to withdraw the establishment’s approval and may suspend a fish establishment’s approval where the establishment guarantees that it will resolve deficiencies at least within three months. (18) Approval granted by the Director under sub-regulation (5) of this Regulation shall be conditional that operations commence not later than thirty six calendar months from the date of that approval. (19) Where ownership of an establishment under this part is transferred, the transferor shall surrender the approval of such establishment to the Director who shall cancel the approval. (20) Where the transferee intends to use the establishment for the purpose for which the approval was granted, he shall, within thirty days from the date of transfer, apply for the approval. (21) Any person who contravenes sub-regulation (19) commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings.
78. (1) There is established a Committee to be known as Evaluation Committee. (2) The Committee shall be composed of- (a) three persons representing the Fisheries Sector; (b) one person representing Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority; (c) one person representing Tanzania Bureau of Standards. (3) Members of the Committee shall be appointed by the Director and shall hold office for a term of five years and may be renewable once.
79. (1) The Committee shall evaluate the competency of production and Quality Assurance Managers employed by fish processing establishments and any other functions as may be assigned by the Competent Authority. (2) The management of fish establishment shall inform the Competent Authority on the termination of Production and Quality Assurance Managers.
80. (1) The management of a cold store shall before commencing construction, reconstruction or adapting an establishment make an application in a prescribed Form 5 set out in the First Schedule for approval to the Director. (2) The application shall contain: - (a) full name, physical, postal and electronic address of the establishment and the managers; (b) description and composition of finished products; (c) number of employees; and (d) storage capacities. (3) After receiving the application, the Competent Authority shall examine it and proceed with on site verification. (4) Without prejudice the provisions of sub-regulation (4) of Regulation 77, the following conditions shall apply- (a) the establishment facilities and their respective utilization; (b) the refrigeration equipment and its capacity; (c) the system for handling stored products; and (d) Good Manufacturing Practice and Good Hygiene Practice manuals; (5) The Competent Authority shall, after examining the application and its accompanying documents, and being satisfied that applicant has complied with requirements of these Regulations, grant approval for the construction of the cold store. (6) The cold store shall be inspected in accordance with procedures prescribed in the reference standard QA/RS/01 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (7) The cold store which conforms to the relevant requirements shall be issued with an Approval Certificate as prescribed in QA/APP/01 set out in the Fifth Schedule and shall be included in a list of certified cold stores authorized to store frozen fish and fishery products. (8) The application shall be renewed as often as necessary after any major changes in the infrastructure or equipment. (9) Certified cold stores shall be regularly inspected by Fish Inspectors to ensure that sanitary requirements are complied with and that the cold stores apply proper handling and storage practices. (10) The routine inspection carried out pursuant to sub-regulation (9) shall be in accordance with reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/04 set out in the Sixth Schedule.
81. (1) The management of an ice plant shall, before commencing construction, reconstruction or adapting an establishment, make an application to the Director for his approval in a prescribed Form 5 set out in the First Schedule. (2) The application shall contain- (a) the full name, physical, postal and electronic address of the establishment and managers; (b) the numbers of employees; (c) the ice production and storage capacities, equipment; and (d) the ice distribution vehicles. (3) The Competent Authority shall, after receiving the application form, examine the application and proceed with on site verification. (4) After examining the application and its accompanying documents, and being satisfied that the applicant has complied with requirements of these Regulations, the Competent Authority shall grant approval for the construction or installation of ice plant. (5) The ice plant shall be inspected in accordance with the relevant sections prescribed in reference standard QA/RS/01 provided in the Sixth Schedule. (6) The ice plant which conforms to the relevant requirements shall be issued with an Approval Certificate set out in a certificate code QA/APP/01 set out in the Fifth Schedule and be included in the list of certified ice plants authorized to produce and distribute ice for chilling fish and fishery products. (7) The application shall be renewed as often as necessary after any major changes in the infrastructure or in the refrigeration equipment. (8) The certified ice plant shall be regularly inspected by Fish Inspectors to ensure that sanitary requirements are complied with and that the ice plants apply proper handling and manufacturing practices. (9) The routine inspection carried out pursuant to sub Regulation (9) shall be in accordance with relevant sections of reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/04 set out in the Sixth Schedule.
82. Subject to the provisions of Regulations 77, 80 and 81 the Director may, temporarily or permanently close a fish establishment or aquaculture establishment found to contravene these Regulations.
83. (1) Any person who intends to transport fish or fishery products shall make an application to the Director for a certificate of transportation in a prescribed Form 6 set out in the First Schedule (2) The details of the application shall include: - (a) the full name, physical, postal and electronic address of the applicant; (b) the means of transport intended to be deployed, licence information, registration number and other relevant information; (c) the transport capacity; (d) the refrigeration and insulation capacity; (e) the cleaning and sanitation program; and (f) name and physical address of the source of ice to be used. (3) The Competent Authority shall examine the application and its accompanying documents before proceeding to a thorough inspection of the transport vehicle or vessel, in accordance with reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/09 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (4) The transport vehicle or vessel which conforms to the relevant requirements shall be issued with an Approval Certificate prescribed in QA/APP/06 set out in the Fifth Schedule and be included in a list of certified transport vehicles and vessels authorized to handle and transport fish and fishery products. (5) A certified transport vehicle or vessel shall be regularly inspected to ensure that sanitary requirements are complied with in accordance with reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/23 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (6) A certificate for fish and fishery products transportation shall be renewed as often as necessary after any major changes in the transport refrigeration equipment or insulation system and shall be valid until 31st December of the year issued. (7) The certified transport vehicle or vessel shall only be used for transportation of fish and fishery products. (8) The fish transport vehicle shall bear the name “FISH” or “SAMAKI” or the logo of the fish establishment on both sides of the “box body” and be marked permanently and conspicuously to the satisfaction of the Fish Inspector thus the letter size shall be not less than twelve inches by six inches or thirty centimetres by fifteen centimetres. (9) Any fish or fishery product transport vehicle shall have an insulated box-body or an insulated and air-tight container for holding the products, or vessels with the same type of containers or with in-built insulated box-type cabins or hulls. (10) The container under sub regulation (9) shall be non-wooden, non-corrosive, with food grade internal lining with adequate cross-sectional insulation thickness and a well-sealed door to maintain the fish at chilling temperatures.
84. (1) The Director in collaboration with local government authorities shall, subject to subsection (1) of section 8 and subsections (1) and (2) of section 18 of the Act, enter into management agreement with Beach Management Units for the purpose of ensuring proper management of the fish landing stations. (2) local government authorities shall in collaboration with fisher communities, identify and designate fish landing stations. (3) Criteria for selection of fish landing station shall include- (a) adequate depth to allow convenient berthing of fishing vessels; (b) being away from critical fish habitat; (c) having adequate space for development; (d) being easily accessible by road; (e) sheltered from direct wind and wave action; (f) minimum distance from freshwater source. (4) A designated fish landing station shall be developed to include- (a) permanent toilet facilities; (b) weighing scales; (c) shade for fish weighing or fish sale; (d) fish transfer facilities including clean containers, barge or jetty designed in such a manner to facilitate easy transfer of fish; (e) tables with food grade, non wooden, non corrosive and impervious tops; (f) reliable roads; (g) clean and safe water; (h) solid and liquid waste disposal facilities; (i) storm water drainage system; and (j) office structure. (5) The Director shall, after consultations with the relevant local government authorities and after being satisfied that the station meets conditions as provided under sub-regulations (3) and (4), approve such a fish landing station. (6) A person shall not land and trade fish on any place other than the designated fish landing station or fish establishment. (7) Fish or fishery products shall not be thrown or placed on floor or sand at the fish landing station. (8) The freshness of fish landed at fish landing station shall be evaluated according to reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/16 and results recorded as prescribed in QA/RS/07 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (9) Sampling of fish at landing station shall be carried out in accordance with the method prescribed in QA/RS/12 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (10) Sampling of fish at the plant level shall be carried out in accordance to the method prescribed in reference standard QA/RS/13 set out Sixth Schedule. (11) The Competent Authority shall ensure that water samples are drawn from designated fish landing stations and submitted to an approved laboratory for microbiological, physical and chemical analysis as per sampling plan.
85. (1) The Director shall cause the fish landing stations under these Regulations to be regularly inspected. (2) Inspection of fish landing stations shall be carried out in accordance with reference standard QA/RS/06 set out in the Sixth Schedule.
86. (1) The Director shall ensure that the management of the approved fish or aquaculture establishments implement the Quality Management Programs based on standard procedures prescribed in respective Good Manufacturing Practices, Good Hygiene Practices and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points manuals. (2) The management of the establishments shall abide with Code of Practice for fish and fishery products and Manual of Standard Operating Procedures for inspection and quality assurance in capture fishery and aquaculture as developed by the Competent Authority. (3) The management of fish or aquaculture establishment shall construct an in-house laboratory or secure the service of a contracted laboratory with necessary equipment to verify the efficiency of the quality and safety system based on microbiological specifications and where laboratory facility outside the establishment is used, it shall be approved by the Competent Authority. (4) The management of an establishment shall employ at least one person competent on food production and safety who shall be the in-charge of all matters pertaining to fish safety and quality. (5) Subject to the provision of sub-regulation (1), the management of an establishment shall ensure that all staff concerned with own checks, receive adequate training in order to effectively participate in their implementation based on the following principles- (a) identification of critical points in their establishment on the basis of the manufacturing processes used; (b) establishment and implementation of methods for monitoring and checking such critical points; (c) taking samples for analysis in a laboratory approved by the Competent Authority for the purpose of verifying cleaning, disinfection methods and for compliance with the national standards prescribed in these Regulations; (d) keep record in an indelible fashion of the requirements under paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) to be availed to fish inspectors for verification; (e) keep the results of different checks and tests for a period of at least two years.
87. (1) The Director shall inspect and audit the implementation of the own checks of the approved establishment to ensure compliance to the Good Manufacturing Practices and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points system. (2) The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points Assessment and onsite verification shall be carried out by the Competent Authority using reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/10 and QA/RS/11 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (3) The Competent Authority shall take samples of fish and fishery products, water and sediments and subject them to laboratory for analysis according to relevant national standards for the purpose of verifying effectiveness of implementation of the quality and safety assurance systems put in place by management of fish or aquaculture establishments. (4) Sampling of fish and fishery products shall be in accordance with the prescribed scheme QA/RS/14 or QA/RS/15 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (5) Sampling of fish and fishery products, water and sediment from aquaculture establishment shall be in accordance with National Residue Monitoring Plan for aquaculture. (6) Samples from the fish establishment, aquaculture establishment and environment shall be collected, delivered and requested to be analysed by using Forms 20(a), 20(b) and 20(c) respectively set out in the First Schedule.
88. (1) The management of an establishment shall ensure that samples of fish and fishery product are taken from their establishments and analysed in an accredited laboratory for microbiological and chemical parameters; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Dioxins, and heavy metals according to their sampling plans. (2) The management of an establishment shall ensure that water samples from their establishments are analysed in an accredited laboratory for microbiological, physical and chemical parameters; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Dioxins, and heavy metals according to their sampling plans.
89. (1) Where the results of the own checks referred to in Regulation 86, or any information at the disposal of the management of an establishment reveals a health risk, the management t of the establishment shall conduct a risk assessment of potential hazards and institute quick risk management to rectify the non conformance and communicate such risk to the Competent Authority. (2) The Competent Authority shall evaluate the information received, and where necessary, take appropriate measures.
90. (1) A fish caught from its natural environment or aquaculture establishment intended for placing in a market shall be- (a) handled in accordance with the conditions prescribed in these Regulations; (b) transported in vessels or vehicles approved according to Regulation 83; (c) hygienically handled, processed and stored in approved fish establishment; (d) satisfactorily checked for organoleptic, parasitological, chemical and microbiological criteria in accordance with the relevant national standards; and (e) Appropriately packaged, labelled, marked and transported under hygienic conditions. (2) Any live fish to be placed on the market shall, at all times, be kept under survival conditions.
91. A person shall not- (a) export, process for export or attempt to export or process for export any fish or fishery product unless that fish or fishery product is processed in an establishment approved under these regulations; (b) import for processing any fish and fishery products that is not wholesome or otherwise fails to meet the requirements of these Regulations. (c) import fish and fishery products without an Import Permit as prescribed in QA/APP/12 set out in Fifth Schedule.
92. Notwithstanding any provision of these Regulations, the import permit for fish and fishery products shall not be granted to any person unless the Competent Authority of the exporting country certifies that the fish and fishery products- (a) originate from an approved establishment; (b) were not caught by Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing.
93. (1) A person shall not import, export, process, store or place for sale or attempt to import, export, process, store or place for sale- (a) any poisonous fish including species of the family Tetradontidae, Molidae, Diodontidae, Gempilidae and Canthigasteridae; (b) fish or fishery products containing biotoxins, toxins, prohibited antibiotics, veterinary drugs and contaminants; (c) fish or fishery products containing food additives not permitted or in amounts exceeding permissible levels; or (d) fish or fishery products contaminated with radioactive material. (2) A person shall not load fish or fishery products in a vessel, vehicle, aircraft or railway wagon for export or unload fish or fishery products from such conveyance, unless the consignment has been duly inspected by a fish inspector and that, the requirements of Regulation 106 have been complied with. (3) A person shall not discharge, unload or place for sale imported fish or fishery products unless the Fish Inspector has checked the validity of the following documents- (a) an import permit or licence and bill of lading; (b) Health Certificate or Sanitary Certificate issued by a Competent Authority of the country of origin; (c) certification of being radioactive-free issued by the Competent Authority of the country of origin; (d) evidence on availability of storage facilities and distribution channels for the consignment within Mainland Tanzania; and (e) total quantity and value of the import. (4) Notwithstanding the requirements of sub regulation (3), a label shall be placed on each fish or fishery product container in order to allow the identification of the processing establishment from which the fish or fishery products originated, which shall include- (a) nature of the fishery product; (b) species name (common and scientific name); (c) name and address of the processing establishment; (d) batch or code number; (e) date of manufacture; (f) expiry date; (g) gross and net weight; (h) country of origin; and (i) grading or size categories, on the packaging. (5) A person shall not export any fish or fishery product that does not comply with the requirements for labelling of pre-packaged fish or fishery products as prescribed under these regulations. (6) A person shall not move fish or fishery products from a fish landing station to the market without a permit prescribed in QA/APP/04 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (7) Part B of the permit issued under sub-regulation (6) shall be handed over to an Authorized Officer responsible for the area in which the market is located and Part A shall be retained by the fish dealer.
94. (1) A label shall be placed on each fish or fishery product package in order to allow identification of the processing establishment from which the fish or fishery products originated. (2) The label shall include- (a) nature of the fishery product; (b) species name (common and scientific name); (c) name and address of the fish processing establishment; (d) approval number (APP); (e) batch or code number; (f) date of manufacture; (g) expiry date; (h) product grades; (i) net weight and (j) the words “PRODUCT OF TANZANIA” on the packaging. (3) The management of fish and aquaculture establishment shall, for the purpose of traceability from upstream to a market, recall and retrieval of the fish and fishery products, develop a traceability system which shall include- (a) name of fishing ground or pond number; (b) name and address of a licensee; (c) name of the fish landing station; (d) name and address of fish supplier; (e) transportation vehicle or vessel registration number; (f) date of landing and quantity landed; (g) date of processing; (h) nature of the product; (i) date and time of harvest; (j) product grades; (k) quantity of the product; (l) nature of the product; (m) both common and scientific name. (4) The information contained in sub-regulation (3) shall be duly filled in the prescribed form QA/RS/08 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (5) The management of fish establishment shall, for the purpose of recall and retrieval from a market, develop a traceability system which shall enable them to find- (a) a complete address of the client; and (b) full description of the products shipped including nature, quantity, lot number, transport conditions and date of shipment. (6) The Director shall put in place record keeping and verification systems for the purpose of traceability from upstream fish landing stations, processing establishments and aquaculture establishment to the export exit points.
95. (1) The management of an establishment shall, before dispatch of a batch, lot or consignment of fish or fishery products for export, notify in writing the Competent Authority of its intention to export fish or fishery products at least twenty four hours in advance in case of chilled fresh products, and at least seventy two hours in advance, in case of frozen products. (2) The request for export permit shall be as prescribed in QA/APP/05 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (3) Each batch, lot or consignment of fish or fishery products to be exported, shall be made available by the management for inspection at the establishment. (4) A batch, lot or consignment of fish or fishery products shall not be transferred from the fish establishment or aquaculture establishment to another area without approval of the Competent Authority.
96. Where a fish or fishery product which is a part of a batch, lot or consignment of food of the same class or description, is unsafe it shall be presumed that all the fish or fishery products in that batch, lot or consignment are unsafe until otherwise proved by a detailed assessment.
97. (1) Fish and fishery products shall, during production and before are released for human consumption, be subjected to a visual inspection for the purpose of detecting and removing any parasites that are visible. (2) Fish or parts of fish which are obviously infested with parasites and which have been removed shall not be placed on the market for human consumption.
98. (1) The highest possible standard of cleanliness of staff shall be maintained, namely- (a) the staff shall wear suitable clean working uniforms and head gear which completely encloses their hair and this shall particularly apply to persons handling exposed fish or fishery products; (b) workers uniforms shall be conspicuous and colour coded to differentiate sections; (c) all cuts, abrasions and sores on the hands shall be covered with a waterproof plaster and the hand shall be covered with a disposable, waterproof dressing conspicuously coloured and such persons shall not work on open food areas. (2) Every staff shall appropriately be trained in food hygiene disciplines. (3) Every staff working in fish establishment shall not wear jewellery, watches, lipstick, nail polish or strong perfumes. (4) Where the services of a contract laundry are engaged, their establishments shall be audited to ensure that standards are acceptable, and cross contamination of cleaned clothes is not possible and food handlers’ protective clothing shall be separated from those of hospitals and pharmaceutical industries. (5) Fish establishment management shall provide adequate hand washing and disinfection facilities, such as non bacterial liquid soap or non perfumed barrier creams or alcohol based skin sanitizers; while hands shall be thoroughly dried, nails kept short. (6) Only hands free knee or electronically operated sink units with an adequate supply of hot potable running water shall be provided at all areas where product is handled. (7) Persons suffering from any infectious illness such as gastro-intestinal disorders, vomiting, diarrhoea, skin infections, upper respiratory tract infections or ear disorders shall not be permitted to work in contact with food or to come in contact with other food handlers. (8) The establishment management shall ensure that all employees undertake bi-annual medical examinations using the service of an authorised medical officer and results be kept for reference. (9) All visitors to the establishment shall- (a) on arrival, report to reception; (b) sign the visitors’ book; (c) complete a questionnaire regarding their health status on communicable diseases related to food; and (d) give information on previous places of visits. (10) Smoking and the use of tobacco shall only be allowed in designated areas which shall be provided with smoke disposal facilities; and smoking utensils such as smoking pipes and cigarette holders be kept in a special area away from the production area. (11) Adequate lockers made of non-corrosive and non-wooden materials shall be provided for personal effects such as outdoor clothing, shoes and bags. (12) All staff shall remove working uniforms before entering canteens and rest room facilities. (13) Canteen and rest room areas shall exercise preventive pest control systems consistent with those adopted in other areas of the factory. (14) Adequate separate western type toilets and changing rooms for male and female shall be provided for the number of employees on site and shall comply with hygienic requirements as stipulated in these Regulations thus the following formula shall be used in assessing the adequacy of toilet facilities in relation to the number of employees- (a) 1 to 9 employees- 1 toilet; (b) 10 to 24 employees - 2 toilets; (c) 25 to 49 employees- 3 toilets; and (d) 50 to 100 employees- 5 toilets, (15) Toilets shall be placed at a reasonable distance, not opening directly into fish processing areas and shall afford privacy to the users.
99. (1) Every fish establishment shall have the following minimum requirements- (a) a reception area set aside for taking fish and fishery products on board, designed and arranged into pounds or pens that are large enough to allow each successive catch to be separated: (i) the reception area and its movable parts shall be easy to clean and disinfect; and (ii) it shall be designed in such a way as to protect the products from the sun or elements and from any source of dirt or contamination; (b) a system for conveying fish and fishery products from the reception area to the work area which conforms with hygienic requirements set in these Regulations; (c) work areas which are large enough for the preparation and processing of fish and fishery products in proper conditions of hygiene designed and arranged in such a way as to prevent any contamination of the products; (d) storage areas for finished products which are large enough, easy to clean; and if a waste processing unit operates on board, a separate hold be designed for the storage of these by-products; (e) a place for storing packaging materials separate from the product preparation and processing areas; (f) special equipment provided for pumping waste or fishery products that are unfit for human consumption either directly into the sea or where circumstances so require, into a watertight tank reserved for that purpose and if waste is stored and processed on board with a view to cleaning, separate areas be allocated for that purpose; (g) equipment provided for supply of potable and pressurized clean seawater; and the seawater intake situated in a position where it is not possible for the water being taken into be affected by discharges into the sea of waste water, waste and engine coolant outlets; (h) toilets not opening directly in areas where fish and fishery products are prepared, processed or stored and in addition, complying with conditions prescribed under sub-regulations (5),(6) and (14) of Regulation 98.
100. Areas used for the preparation and processing, freezing or quick freezing of fishery products shall have- (a) a non slippery floor which is easy to clean, disinfect and designed for easy drainage of water and its structures and fixtures shall have chamber holds that are large enough not to be obstructed by fish waste and to allow water to drain freely; (b) walls and ceiling that are easy to clean, particularly, where there are pipes, chains or electric conduits pipes; (c) hydraulic circuits shall be arranged or protected in such a way as to ensure that it is not possible for any leakage of oil to contaminate fishery products; (d) adequate ventilation and, where necessary, proper vapour extraction; (e) adequate lighting; (f) appliances for cleaning and disinfecting tools, equipment and fittings; (g) appliances for cleaning and disinfecting the hands with taps that are not hand or foot operated and with disposable towels. (h) equipment and tools including cutting benches, containers, conveyors, gutting or filleting machines.
101. (1) Freezing and storage facilities shall be sufficiently powerful to- (a) lower the temperature rapidly so as to achieve a core temperature of minus 18 degrees Celsius (-18ºC) or lower in two hours or less; (b) keep fishery products in the storage holds at a temperature of minus 18 degrees Celsius (-18ºC) or lower; (c) storage rooms shall have a temperature recording device (thermograph) in a place where it can easily be read and the temperature sensor of the recorder shall be located in the area further away from the cold source where the temperature in the storage room is the highest. (2) Chilling and storage facilities shall be sufficiently powerful to keep fishery products in the storage holds at a temperature of zero degree Celsius (0ºC) to four degrees Celsius (+4ºC). (3) Monthly temperature charts shall be available for inspection by Fish Inspectors at least during the period in which the products are stored.
102. Hygiene relating to on-board handling and storage of fish and fishery products shall comply with the following: (a) an officer in charge of quality and safety assurance on board the fishing vessel shall be responsible for applying Good Manufacturing Practices; and he shall ensure that the provisions of these Regulations are complied to; (b) the general conditions of hygiene applicable to establishments and equipment specified in Regulation 105; (c) the general conditions of hygiene applicable to staff specified in Regulation 98; (d) heading, gutting and filleting carried out under the conditions of hygiene specified in Regulation 110 (8), (9), (10) and (11); (e) on-board processing of fish and fishery products carried out under the appropriate conditions specified in Regulations 90, 97, 104 and 105; (f) fish and fishery products wrapped and packaged under the conditions of hygiene specified in Regulation 107; (g) on-board storage of fish and fishery products carried out under the conditions of hygiene specified in sub-regulation (2) of Regulation 106.
103. During and after landing of fish and fishery products the following requirements shall apply- (a) unloading and landing equipment constructed of material which is easy to clean and disinfect are kept in a good state of repair and cleanliness; (b) contamination of fish and fishery products shall be avoided by ensuring that: (i) unloading and landing operations proceed rapidly; (ii) fish and fishery products, are placed without unnecessary delay in a protected environment at the temperature required on the basis of the nature of the product and where necessary, in ice, transport, storage or market facilities or in an establishment; and (iii) equipment and handling practices that cause unnecessary damage to the edible parts of the fish and fishery products are prohibited; (c) auction or wholesale markets shall- (i) have signs prohibiting smoking, spitting, eating and drinking displayed; (ii) have an adequately equipped lockable room for fish inspector and the equipment necessary for carrying out inspections; (iii) the general conditions of hygiene which are specified in these regulations shall apply; (d) prohibition of vehicles emitting exhaust fumes which may impair the quality of the fish and fishery products near markets and other places where fish and fishery products are stored; (e) after landing or after first sale, as the case may be, fish and fishery products shall be transported without delay under the conditions specified in Regulation 106, and if unsold pending transport to their place of destination shall be stored in approved chiller or cold store as provided in Regulations 80 and 101. (f) the wholesale markets in which fish and fishery products are displayed for sale or stored shall be subjected to the same conditions as under Regulations 101 and 104.
104. (1) An establishment shall have working areas of sufficient space for work to be carried out under adequate hygienic conditions and their design and layout shall be such as to preclude contamination of the product and separate the clean and dirty areas of the building. (2) Areas where products are handled, prepared and processed shall be afforded with- (a) a waterproof floor which is easy to clean and disinfect designed in such a way as to facilitate the drainage of the water or provided with equipment to remove water; (b) walls with smooth surfaces which are easy to clean, durable and impermeable; (c) ceiling or roof linings made of non wooden and non-corrosive materials which are easy to clean; (d) doors of durable non-wooden and non-corrosive materials which are easy to clean and self closing; (e) adequate ventilation, good steam and water-vapour extraction facilities; (f) adequate natural or artificial lighting; (g) an adequate number of facilities for cleaning and disinfecting hands, where in work rooms and toilets, taps shall not be hand or foot operated, and be provided with disposable towels; and (h) facilities for cleaning establishment, equipment and utensils; (3) The provisions of paragraphs (a),(b),(c),(d) and (f) of sub-regulation (2) shall apply in cold rooms where fish or fishery products are stored and where necessary, a sufficiently powerful refrigeration plant to keep products at temperatures provided under sub-regulation (1) of Regulation 101, shall apply. (4) An establishment shall have- (a) appropriate facilities for protection against pests such as insects, rodents, birds and vermin; (b) instruments and working equipment such as cutting tables, containers, conveyor belts and knives made of non-corrosive materials, easy to clean and disinfect; (c) special watertight, non-corrosive containers for fish and fishery products not intended for human consumption; and there shall be an area for storage of such containers if they are not emptied at least at the end of each working day; (d) facilities to provide adequate supplies of drinking water or seawater treated by an appropriate system, under pressure and in sufficient quantity, however: (i) a supply of non-potable water is permissible for the production of steam, fire-fighting and the cooling of refrigeration equipment, provided that the pipes installed for the purpose preclude the use of such water for other purposes and present no risk of contamination of the products; and (ii) non-potable water pipes shall be clearly distinguished from those used for drinking water or clean seawater; (e) hygienic waste water and solid waste disposal systems approved by the relevant authority; (5) The conditions provided in sub-regulation (14) of Regulation 98 shall apply. (6) Where the volume of products treated requires regular or permanent presence of fish inspector(s), an adequately equipped lockable room for the exclusive use of the inspection service shall be provided. (7) Adequate facilities for cleaning and disinfecting means of transport shall be provided and such facilities shall not be compulsory where there is a requirement for the means of transport to be cleaned and disinfected at a contracted facility approved by the Competent Authority.
105. (1) Floors, walls and partitions, ceilings or roof linings, equipment and instruments used for working on fish and fishery products shall be kept in a state of cleanliness and repair. (2) Rodents, insects and any other vermin shall be systematically exterminated in the establishment; rodenticides, insecticides, disinfectants and any other potentially toxic substances shall be stored in lockable cupboards and their use shall not present any risk of contamination of the products. (3) Subject to any other written law, all chemicals to be used in a fish and aquaculture establishment shall be approved by the Competent Authority and a certificate shall be issued listing the type of chemical authorised as prescribed in QA/APP/08 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (4) Working areas, instruments and working equipment shall be used only for work on the fish and fishery products. (5) Potable water or clean seawater, within the meaning of this regulation shall be used for all purposes; however, non potable water may be used for steam production, fire fighting and the cooling of refrigeration equipment, provided that the pipes installed for the purpose preclude the use of such water for other purposes and present no risk of contamination of the products. (6) Subject to any other written law, detergents, disinfectants and similar substances shall be approved by the Competent Authority and used in such a way that they do not adversely affect the machinery, equipment and products.
106. (1) A person shall not transport fish or fishery product unless he has a certificate issued for that purpose. (2) Fish and fishery products shall, during storage and transport, be kept- (a) for fresh or thawed fish or fishery products, cooked and chilled crustacean and molluscan shellfish products, at the temperature of melting ice; (b) for frozen fish or fishery products, with the exception of frozen fish in brine intended for the manufacture of canned foods, at an even temperature of minus 18 degrees Celsius (-18ºC) or less in all parts of the product allowing for the possibility of brief upward fluctuations of not more than three degrees Celsius (3ºC) during transport; and (c) for processed products, at the temperatures complying with the specified standards of the product. (3) Where frozen fish and fishery products are transported from a cold storage plant to an approved establishment without refrigerated means for thawing, on arrival for the purposes of preparation or processing and where the distance is not exceeding fifty kilometres or one hour’s journey, the Competent Authority may exempt from the conditions stipulated in this Regulation. (4) The products shall not be stored or transported with other products which may contaminate them or affect their hygiene. (5) Vehicles used for the transport of fish or fishery products shall be constructed and equipped in such a way that the temperatures shall be maintained throughout the period of transport and in case ice is used to chill the products, adequate drainage shall be provided in order to ensure that water from melted ice does not stay in contact with the products. (6) Means of transport used for fish and fishery products shall not be used for transporting other products. (7) Means of transport emitting excessive exhaust fumes likely to impair the safety and quality of the fishery products shall not have an access to the fish establishment. (8) Management of establishment shall set aside a separate place with appropriate facilities for the cleaning, washing and disinfection of means of transport for the fish and fishery products, unless the Competent Authority authorises use of places or facilities nearby.
107. Fish and fishery products packaging shall- (a) be carried out under conditions of hygiene, to preclude contamination of the fish and fishery products; (b) comply with hygienic requirements as provided in this regulation and in case such material comes into contact with the fish and fishery products they shall: (i) not be in such condition as to impair the organoleptic characteristics of the fish and fishery products; (ii) not be capable of transmitting to the fish and fishery products substances harmful to human health; and (iii) be strong enough to protect the fish and fishery products adequately. (c) with the exception of certain containers made of impervious, smooth and non-corrosive material which are easy to clean and disinfect, packaging materials, not be re-used and packaging materials used for fresh products held under ice, provide adequate drainage for melt water; (d) for an unused packaging materials, be stored in establishment away from the production area and be protected from dust and contamination.
108. (1) An establishment keeping live animals such as fish, cephalopods and crustaceans shall have appropriate fittings ensuring the best survival provided with water of a quality such that no harmful organisms or substances are transferred to the animals. (2) Every fish, cephalopods and crustaceans holding establishment shall- (a) not be located in area which is close to objectionable odours, smoke, dust and other contaminants or be subject to flooding by ordinary high tides or run-off from surrounding areas; (b) be designed and maintained adequately for the purpose of preventing contamination by any type of water, fumes, dirt or by the presence of rodents or other animals; (c) be afforded with a floor which is easy to clean and designed in such a way as to facilitate drainage; (d) have adequate working space to allow for satisfactory performance of all operations; (e) be afforded with durable walls which are easy to clean; (f) be provided with adequate natural or artificial lighting; (g) have adequate number of changing rooms, wash basins and toilets as prescribed in sub-regulation (14) of Regulation 98. (h) have adequate equipment for washing tools, containers and equipment; (i) have facilities for the supply and storage of exclusively potable water within the national water standards or facilities for supply of clean sea water; (j) have equipment and instruments made of non-corrosive material which is easy to wash and clean; (k) have floors and walls of the holding tanks and any water storage containers, which are smooth, hard with impermeable surface and easy to clean, while the base of the holding tanks shall be sufficiently sloped and equipped with drainage sufficient for the volume of work; (l) have clean freshwater or sea water for holding live fish, cephalopods and crustaceans; (m) have a reasonable distance between the fresh or sea water intake point and the waste water outlets, sufficient to avoid contamination; if treatment of fresh or sea water is necessary, the process shall be authorized; (n) allow live fish, cephalopods and crustaceans remain alive up to the time of packing, wrapping and transport before being placed on the market; (o) keep a number of live fish, cephalopods and crustaceans within tank capacity; (p) keep records relating to the raw materials including the type of live fish, cephalopods and crustaceans, its area of origin, supplier, quantity, microbial content and water quality; (q) for each batch, complete legibly and indelibly the relevant sections of the registration document which shall include- (i) the supplier’s identity and signature; (ii) the date of harvesting; (iii) the location of the production area, in as precise detail as practicable; (iv) the fish, cephalopods and crustaceans species and quantity indicated as precise as practicable; (v) approval number; and (vi) address of consignee; (r) ensure that every package containing live fish, cephalopods and crustaceans, comply with the labelling requirements provided under these Regulations; and (s) make sure that the conditioning of the live animals shall not cause their contamination, with special regard to the bacteriological and quality of the fresh or sea water used in the facility.
109. (1) Without prejudice the provisions of Regulation 108, the following shall be taken into consideration- (a) operation of the purification system shall allow live bivalve molluscs to remain alive in a suitable condition after purification for wrapping, storage and transport before being placed on the market; (b) the quantity of live bivalve molluscs to be purified shall not exceed the capacity of the purification centre and shall be continuously purified for a period sufficient to allow the microbiological standards to be met; the purification centre shall take account of the data relating to the raw materials; (c) where a purification tank of several batches of molluscs is used, they shall be of the same species and come from the same production area or different areas conforming to the same health conditions and the length of the treatment shall be based on the time required by the batch needing the longest period of purification; (d) containers used to hold live bivalve molluscs in purification systems shall have a construction which allows sea water to flow through; the depth of layers of live bivalve molluscs shall not impede the opening of shells during purification; and (e) conditioning shall not cause any contamination of the product. (2) Crustaceans, fish or other marine species shall not be kept in a purification tank in which live bivalve molluscs are undergoing purification;
110. (1) When chilled unpackaged products are not dispatched, prepared or processed immediately after reaching the establishment, they shall be stored or displayed under ice or a chiller temperature of the product not exceed four degrees Celsius (4ºC). (2) Re-icing shall be carried out as often as is necessary; (3) Contaminated or used ice shall not be permitted for icing fish and fishery products. (4) The ice used, with or without salt, shall be made from potable water or clean sea water and stored under hygienic conditions in receptacles provided for the purpose. (5) Pre-packaged fresh products shall be chilled in ice or chiller. (6) The fishery products from fish species of the families Scombridae, Clupeidae, Engraulidae, Coryfenidae, Pomatomidae, Scombresosidae, shall be tested for histamine content whereby minimum and maximum limits shall be two hundred milligrams per kilogram and four hundred milligrams per kilogram respectively. (7) The maximum level of sodium-metabisulphate shall not exceed one hundred milligrams per kilogram in the edible part of the raw product or thirty milligrams per kilogram in the edible part of the cooked product. (8) Heading, gutting and dressing shall be carried out hygienically; and the products be washed thoroughly with potable running water or clean seawater. (9) Filleting and slicing shall be carried out in a place other than the place used for heading and gutting operations in order to avoid contamination or spoilage of fillets and slices. (10) Guts and parts that may constitute a danger to public health shall be separated and removed from the vicinity of products intended for human consumption. (11) Fillets and slices shall not remain on work tables any longer than is necessary for their preparation and shall be protected from contamination by appropriate packaging. (12) Containers used for the dispatch or storage of fresh fish and fishery products shall be designed in such a way as to preclude contamination of products, provide adequate drainage of melt water and ensure preservation of products under hygienic conditions. (13) Waste management shall comply with the following requirements:- (a) special water-tight, non-corrosive or non-wooden containers shall be provided in the establishment for the continuous disposal of waste; (b) waste shall be placed in leak proof, covered containers which are easy to clean and disinfect; (c) waste shall not be allowed to accumulate in working areas and shall be removed either continuously or as soon as the containers are full and at least at the end of each working day; (d) containers, receptacles and rooms set aside for waste shall always be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected after use; waste stored or disposed shall not constitute a source of contamination to the establishment or of pollution to the environment; and (e) maintain hygienic waste water disposal system. (14) Fishery products derived from bivalve molluscs, echinoderms, tunicates and marine gastropods, containing bio-toxins such as Ciguatera or other toxins dangerous to human health may be placed on the market, if bio-toxins in total quantities does not exceed the following limits:- (a) for Paralytic Shellfish Poison, eight hundred micrograms per kilogram; (b) for Amnesic Shellfish Poison, twenty milligrams of domoic acid per kilogram; (c) for okadaic acid, dinophysistoxins and pectenotoxins together, one hundred and sixty micrograms of okadaic acid equivalents per kilogram; (d) for yessotoxins, one milligram of yessotoxin equivalent per kilogram; and (e) for azaspiracids, one hundred and sixty micrograms of azaspiracid equivalents per kilogram. (15) Penta Potassium - triphosphate and Sodium polyphosphate may be used as additives in fish and fishery products and shall not exceed ten milligrams per kilogram in lobster and 0.5% in shrimp and fish. (16) Sodium sulphate, Sodium metabisulphate, Potassium metabisulphate, Potassium sulphite and Potassium bisulphite may be used as preservatives in fish and fishery products and the permissible amount shall not exceed one hundred milligrams per kilogram in edible part of the raw product or thirty milligrams per kilogram in edible part of the cooked product. (17) The chemicals authorised for use in the fish and fishery products in sub-regulation (15) and (16), shall be used as per manufacturer’s instructions and guidelines given by internationally recognised bodies.
111. (1) The management of an establishment shall ensure that water samples from their establishments are analysed in an accredited laboratory for microbiological, physical and chemical parameters to include Pesticide residues, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, dioxin and heavy metal according to their sampling plan. (2) The management of an establishment shall ensure that samples of fish and fishery products are taken from their establishments and analysed in an accredited laboratory for microbiological and chemical parameters to include pesticide residues, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Dioxin and heavy metal according to their sampling plan. (3) For the purpose of environmental monitoring, and verification of the effectiveness of safety assurance in fish establishments, the Competent Authority shall draw samples of water, fish and fishery products for analysis of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Dioxin, heavy metal, pesticide residues, anti-microbial residues and veterinary drugs;
112. Fresh products, which need to be frozen or quick-frozen, shall comply with the requirements under Regulation 110.
113. Establishments which carry out thawing operations shall make sure that- (a) fishery products are thawed under hygienic conditions and contamination of the thawed product avoided by having adequate drainage for melt water; (b) during thawing, the temperature does not exceed eighteen degrees Celsius (18oC); (c) after thawing, fishery products shall be handled in accordance with the following requirements: (i) when they are prepared or processed, these operations shall be carried out immediately; (ii) if they are put directly into the market, the thawed state of the fish shall be clearly marked on the packaging indicating original thawing and final temperatures of the product; (iii) the unsold consignment shall be stored in a chill room.
114. (1) Fresh, frozen and thawed products intended for processing shall comply with the provisions of these Regulations. (2) Where the processing treatment is carried out to inhibit the development of pathogenic micro-organisms, or if it is a significant factor in the preservation of the product, the treatment shall be scientifically recognised in accordance with the internationally recommended Codes of Practice for such a product which employ Good Manufacturing Practice. (3) The management of an establishment shall keep a register of the type of process employed, such as heating time and temperature, salt content, pH and water content to be monitored and controlled and such record be kept for the expected storage life of the products and be made available for inspection. (4) For products, which are preserved for a limited period by a treatment such as salting, smoking, drying, frying or marinating, the appropriate conditions for storage shall be clearly marked on the package.
115. (1) Where fish or fishery products have been subjected to sterilization in hermetically sealed containers- (a) the water used for the preparation of cans shall be potable water; (b) the process used for heat treatment shall be appropriate, having regard to such major criteria as the heating time, temperature, filling and size of containers; (c) the heat treatment shall be capable of destroying or inactivating pathogenic organisms and the spores of pathogenic micro-organisms; (d) the heating equipment shall be fitted with devices for verifying whether the containers have undergone appropriate heat treatment; (e) potable water shall be used to cool containers after heat treatment, without prejudice to the presence of any chemical additives used in accordance with good technological practice to prevent corrosion of the equipment and containers; (f) further checks shall be carried out at random by the manufacturer to ensure that the processed products have undergone appropriate heat treatment by; (i) incubation tests carried out at 37 degrees Celsius (37oC) for seven days or at 35 degrees Celsius (35oC) for ten days or any other equivalent combination; (ii) microbiological examination of contents and containers in the establishment laboratory or in any other approved laboratory. (g) samples of production shall be taken each day at predetermined intervals, to ensure the efficacy of sealing; and (h) checks shall be carried out in order to ensure that containers are not damaged. (2) All containers which have undergone heat treatment under practically identical conditions shall be given a batch identification mark or marks identifying the lot to which a food product belongs.
116. (1) Fresh products, intended for smoking, shall comply with the requirements of Regulation 110. (2) Smoking shall be carried out in a separate establishment or a special place equipped, with a ventilation system to control smoke and heat. (3) Materials used to produce smoke shall be- (a) stored away from the place of smoking and used in such a way that they do not contaminate the products; (b) free from paint, varnish, glue or any chemical preservatives; and (c) free from intrinsic carcinogens and chemicals. (4) After smoking, hot smoked products shall be cooled rapidly to below ten degrees Celsius (10oC) within two hours or to below three degrees Celsius (3oC) within six hours for their preservation before being packaged; and cold smoked products shall be adequately cooled to zero degree Celsius (0oC) to minus two degrees Celsius (– 2oC) within two hours. (5) Smoked fish shall be handled, packaged, stored and transported in a manner which prohibits contamination. (6) Source of smoke shall not impart any objectionable or any harmful substance which may affect health of the consumers. (7) For the purpose of identification, smoked fish or fishery products shall have identification mark as indicated in Regulation 94 (2). (8) Soot and ashes shall not be allowed to accumulate on the interior of the drying kiln to avoid contamination of the product.
117. (1) Cooking of crustaceans and molluscan shellfish shall immediately be followed by rapid cooling using potable water or clean sea water; and if no other method of preservation is used, cooling shall continue until the temperature approaching that of melting ice is reached. (2) Shelling or shucking shall be carried out under hygienic conditions avoiding the contamination of the product and- (a) where such operations are done by hand, workers shall pay particular attention to the cleanliness of their hands and all working surfaces be cleaned thoroughly; (b) where machines are used, they shall be cleaned at frequent intervals and disinfected after each working day; and (c) after shelling or shucking, cooked products shall immediately be frozen or kept chilled at a temperature which precludes the growth of pathogens be stored in appropriate premises. (3) Establishment shall carry out microbiological checks on cooked crustaceans and molluscan shellfish products at regular intervals, complying with the approved National standards.
118. (1) The mechanical recovery of fish flesh shall- (a) take place immediately after filleting, using raw materials free of guts and where whole fish are used, they shall be gutted and washed beforehand; (b) after recovery, be frozen as quickly as possible or incorporated in a product intended for freezing or stabilizing treatment. (2) The machinery used for mechanical recovery of fish flesh shall be cleaned at frequent intervals and at least after every two hours;
119. (1) Fresh products to be sun dried shall comply with the requirements of Regulation 110. (2) In sun drying, fish and fishery products shall be placed on raised platform or racks away from the presence of potentially harmful contaminations. (3) In sun drying, fishery products shall be protected from vermin and contamination by birds, dropping from animals, dust and any other extraneous material. (4) During processing and storage of fish and fishery products, only approved preservatives shall be used. (5) Working environment shall be kept in hygienic and sanitary conditions at all times to prevent cross contamination.
120. Fresh products intended for frying shall comply with the requirements of Regulation 110 and also the following conditions shall apply: (a) frying temperature shall not exceed two hundred degrees Celsius (200oC); (b) no darkened or tarry oil shall be used; (c) ready to eat fried fish and fishery products shall be handled, packed, served or stored under hygienic and sanitary conditions provided under these regulations; and (d) ingredients and additives to be used shall meet the required national standards.
121. (1) Any fish meal intended for human consumption shall be- (a) produced and handled under hygienic and sanitary conditions; (b) obtained, handled, transferred and stored separately from products intended for animals consumption; and (c) checked for compliance through laboratory analysis conducted by an approved laboratory. (2) Any fish by-products intended for fish meal production shall be collected and transported in suitable containers and vehicles, in order to prevent leakage of liquid. (3) Subject to sub-regulation (2), the containers or vehicle used shall adequately be covered by tarpaulin or plastic sheets. (4) The materials used under sub-regulation (3) shall be cleaned, disinfected after each use and maintained in a hygienic condition. (5) The fish meal establishment shall- (a) have an appropriately covered section to receive by-products and a separate section for storage of final product which: (i) shall be constructed in such a way as to ease cleaning and disinfection; and (ii) its floors designed in such a way as to allow easy drainage of liquid oozing from the by-products. (b) ensure that the unpleasant smell from its production activities does not affect the neighbourhood. (6) During storage, fish meal shall be stored in a cool dry place protected from rodents and birds. (7) Fish meal set aside for human and animals shall not be placed on the market or fed to any food producing animal if it is unsafe and shall be deemed to be unsafe for its intended use if it is considered to- (a) have an adverse effect on human or animal health; and (b) make the food derived from food-producing animals unsafe for human consumption. (8) Where a feed which has been identified as not satisfying the feed safety requirements is part of a batch, lot or consignment of feed of the same class or description, it shall be presumed that all of the feed in that batch, lot or consignment is so affected, unless a detailed assessment on the batch, lot or consignment proving the contrary has been done.
122. (1) Aquaculture products intended for processing in the approved fish establishment shall comply with conditions specified in these Regulations. (2) Fish or fishery products of aquaculture origin shall not be placed on the market for human consumption unless such products comply with the conditions prescribed in these regulations. (3) Any fish establishment receiving cultured products for processing and subsequent placing on the market shall be supplied with supplier’s declaration that- (a) indicates administered drugs; (b) where veterinary medicines have been applied, minimum withdrawal period have been observed and maximum residue limits are not exceeded; and (c) no prohibited substances are present.
123. Every fish feed manufacturer, shall ensure that- (a) fish feed shall not be placed on the market unless it is labelled with composition or feed code number, texture, manufacture and expiry date, country of origin and contact address for traceability purposes; (b) veterinary therapeutic products and medicinal premixes for inclusion in fish feeds shall not be applied unless they are approved for use by Competent Authority; (c) slaughterhouse waste or offal from mammalian animals shall not be used as fish feed without proper treatment.
124. (1) Fresh products intended to be salted shall comply with the requirement of Regulation 110; (2) Salting operations shall take place in a designated area adequately separated from the area where other operations are carried; (3) Salt used in the treatment of fishery products shall be clean, of food grade and stored in such a way as to preclude contamination and it shall not be reused; (4) Containers used for salting or brining shall be constructed from non-corrosive and non wooden materials that preclude contamination; (5) Brine liquor coming out from the product during dry salting shall not be allowed to accumulate in the salting room; (6) Salting premises shall be kept in sanitary and hygienic conditions all the time; (7) Workers involved in salting shall observe hygiene requirements as prescribed in Regulation 98.
125. (1) Fresh fish and fishery products intended for domestic markets shall be distributed in the following conditions- (a) transported in containers that are vermin proof, non corrosive, easy to clean and disinfect and they shall be covered to prevent damage, exposure to direct sunlight and contamination; (b) ice used shall be made from potable water and handled in hygienic manner; (c) no passenger shall sit on fish aboard a transport facility; (d) no any cargo shall be placed on fish aboard a transport facility; (e) only fish and fishery products which is wholesome shall be displayed for sale. (2) In addition to conditions stipulated under Regulations 101 and 105 the following conditions for market facilities shall apply - (a) waste management from fish handling shall comply with conditions stipulated under Regulation 110 (13); (b) melt water from ice used shall be ducted into appropriate drain; (c) display counter surfaces shall be made of non porous, non wooden and corrosion resistant material, that is easy to clean and disinfect, constructed with a slope to facilitate drainage; (d) transparent display counters shall be made from non breakable materials; (e) if a temperature controlled display counter or cabinet is used, product temperature shall be maintained at less than five degrees Celsius (5oC); (f) market stalls shall be provided with hand washing basin equipped with sanitary facilities. (3) Fish handlers working in fish and fishery products market shall meet hygienic conditions stipulated under Regulation 98. (4) Chill storage facilities shall comply with conditions stipulated under Regulation 101(2). (5) Cured fish and fishery products shall be distributed in the following conditions- (a) transported in a well aerated container that is vermin proof, non corrosive, easy to clean and disinfect; and avoid placing heavy objects on top of cured fish to prevent damage and fragmentation; (b) cured fish shall not be adulterated with chemicals harmful to human life; (c) cured fish infested with insects or attacked with moulds or any other contaminant shall not be placed on the market; (d) cured fish shall not be tossed, dragged or displayed on the ground. (6) Cured fish and fish products shall be stored in a - (a) clean, well ventilated, vermin proof, dust proof, cool and dry condition; (b) fish packages placed on pallets and stacks of stored fish arranged in a manner that facilitate free movement of fish handler and allows air circulation and prevent damage.
126. (1) Every fishing and fish transporting vessel of less than eleven metres shall have the following conditions- (a) designed and constructed so as not to cause contamination of the products with bilge-water, sewage, smoke, fuel, oil, grease or other objectionable substances; (b) surfaces with which fishery products come into contact must be of suitable corrosion-resistant material that is smooth and easy to clean; (c) surface coatings must be durable and non-toxic; (d) equipment and material used for working on fishery products must be made of corrosion-resistant material that is easy to clean and disinfect; (e) where necessary, conveyances and or containers used for transporting foodstuffs are to be capable of maintaining foodstuffs at appropriate temperatures and allow those temperatures to be monitored; (f) when vessels have a water intake for water used with fishery products, it must be situated in a position that avoids contamination of the water supply. (2) The Competent Authority shall inspect vessels in accordance with reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/25 set out in the Sixth Schedule. (3) A vessel which complies with conditions under sub-regulation (2) of this Regulation shall be regularly inspected in accordance with reference standard prescribed in QA/RS/27 set out in the Sixth Schedule.
127. (1) Sorting and grading of seaweed shall be conducted prior to packing and stored in clean establishment, warehouse free from dust, moisture and contaminants. (2) Moisture content in dry seaweed shall not exceed thirty percent unless specified by the customer.
PART VII OFFENCES AND PENALTIES
128. Any person who contravenes any of the provisions of these Regulations other than those with specified penalties, upon conviction shall- (a) in case of first offence be liable to a fine of not less than two hundred thousand shillings and not exceeding one million shilling or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years and not exceeding five years or to both. (b) in case of a second and subsequent offences, be liable to a fine of not less than three hundred thousand shillings and not more than two million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than three years and not more than six years or to both.
129. (1) Any person, who practices large scale aquaculture without permit from the Director, commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years. (2) Any person who places on market fish feed that is not certified and labelled commits an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years. (3) Any person who uses veterinary therapeutic products and medicinal premixes for inclusion in fish feeds without being approved by a relevant Competent Authority, commits an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or imprisonment for a term of not less than two years. (4) Any person who sells aquaculture fish or fishery products treated with veterinary therapeutic products and medicinal premixes before a relevant Competent Authority has declared in writing that the withdrawal period has been observed, commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years. (5) Any person who uses or releases into the aquatic environment Genetically Modified Organisms or Hybridized Organisms commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years. (6) Any person who transports aquaculture fish and fish products from farm to factory without effecting a complete traceability system for rapid recall, commits an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to a fine of not less than three hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than one year. (7) Any person who uses drugs, medicines or chemicals for the treatment of fish diseases and parasite without being guided by a competent person or obtaining an approval from the relevant Competent Authority, commits an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years. (8) Any person who conducts aquaculture practice in a manner that disrupt the integrity of the environment, commits an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five year and not exceeding ten years.
130. Any person who unlawfully alters, destroys, erases or obliterates any declaration, certificate or other document made or issued under these Regulations, or any label or mark placed on any container in accordance with these regulations, commits an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to a fine of not less than one million shillings or imprisonment of two years.
131. Any person who is aggrieved by a decision of the Director under these regulations may, within thirty days from the date of receiving the confirmed decision in writing, appeal to the Minister.
PART VIII GENERAL PROVISIONS
132. (1) The Director may, from time to time, issue guidelines for the purpose of implementation of these regulations. (2) Without prejudice to the generality of sub-regulation (1), the Director shall issue guidelines for- (a) quality management programs; (b) sampling of fish, fishery products, fish feed, water and sediments for analyses; (c) organoleptic and chemical checks for fish inspection and quality assurance; (d) microbiological analyses for fish inspection and quality assurance; (e) fish landing stations; (f) establishment and operation of Beach Management Units; and (g) auditing of- (i) fish and aquaculture establishments structure and fabrication; (ii) storage facilities; (iii) raw materials; (iv) processing equipment and machinery; (v) personnel standards; (vi) food handling practices; (vii) quality and safety assurance systems; (viii) pest prevention; (ix) cleaning system; (x) management control; and (xi) fish laboratory layout and practices, equipment and specifications.
133. (1) There is established Beach Management Units in every fresh water body and marine coastlines in accordance with Beach Management Unit Guidelines to be made by the Director. (2) The jurisdictional area on land of every Beach Management Unit shall be as agreed upon by fishers community, community based organisations, village councils, local government authority and the Central Government. (3) Subject to the provisions of sub-regulation (2) Beach Management Unit may include more than one fish landing station. (4) Any person engaging in fishery activities including fishers, fish processors, traders, gear repairers and suppliers and boat builders within the Beach Management Units area who meets the following qualifications shall be registered as a member of Beach Management Unit: (i) a resident of the village or villages in which the Beach Management Unit is established; (ii) an ardent conservator of the fishery resources; (iii) of any sex and age above 18 years; (iv) honest, trustful, cooperative, self motivated and ready to work in a group; (v) ready to work on voluntary basis; (vi) a leader shall know how to read and write in Kiswahili. (5) The tenure of office bearers shall be three years, but may be renewable once. (6) Immigrant fishers known as “wavuvi wa dago” shall not be allowed to be members of Beach Management Unit. (7) Non citizen shall not be allowed to be members of Beach Management Unit. (8) Every Beach Management Unit: (a) shall meet quarterly; (b) shall open a bank account and establish a financial management system to support its operations; (c) may acquire assets to be used solely for its operations; (9) The Beach Management Units sources of fund shall be but not limited to- (a) membership fee as approved by the Beach Management Unit Assembly; (b) money accrued from successful tenders obtained from the competitive basis offered by the local government authority and service charges on Beach Management Unit assets; (c) fish landing station user fees; (d) income from fisheries micro-projects; and (e) fines from infringements of Beach Management Unit’s by-laws. (10) A Beach Management Unit may associate with other Beach Management Units and co-management structures to form higher level Beach Management Units for the purposes of fisheries planning, management and development. (11) A Beach Management Unit shall undertake self-monitoring of its performance each year using a monitoring format provided in the National Beach Management Unit Guidelines and external monitoring of each Beach Management Unit shall be undertaken using the same format by the District Executive Director who may delegate this task to appropriate officer. (12) The Director in collaboration with District Authorities or any other authorized officer may, make random spot-check monitoring of Beach Management Units activities. (13) Members under sub-regulation (4) shall form a Beach Management Unit Assembly for purposes of fisheries planning and development in partnership with organs under sub-regulation (2). (14) The Beach Management Unit Assembly- (a) shall approve the Beach Management Unit constitution and membership fee; (b) shall elect a Beach Management Unit Committee in accordance with guidelines under sub-regulation(1); (c) shall elect: (i) a Chairman and Vice-Chairman; (ii) a Secretary; (iii) a Treasurer; and (iv) any other office bearer of the Committee and sub-committees; (d) may issue financial incentives to its members from its own resources; (e) may approve Beach Management Units operating procedures; (f) shall meet quarterly, following a calendar year, and the minutes of the meeting shall be recorded for public scrutiny; (g) may remove from office any member of the Committee and sub committees by majority votes in that respect on the grounds of contravention of the Act, these regulations or Beach Management Unit guidelines and operating procedures; (h) shall approve annual and quarterly budgets of the Beach Management Units; and (i) shall conduct meetings to consider quarterly and annual performance reports. (15) Every fisher folk shall abide by the by-laws and conditions set by the Beach Management Units in their respective areas.
134. (1) The functions of the Beach Management Unit shall include, but not limited to- (a) develop a Beach Management Unit; constitution, fisheries management plan and fish landing station development plan in accordance with higher level fisheries management plans; (b) develop annual and quarterly work plans and budgets to implement the management and development plans; (c) collaborate in fisheries Catch Assessment Surveys, and frame surveys; (d) in collaboration with village council shall develop by-laws and engage in monitoring, control and surveillance in such a way as to reduce the incidence of illegal fishing and fish trading practices and environmental degradation within the Beach Management Unit areas; (e) ensure sanitary and hygienic conditions at the fish landing stations within the Beach Management Unit area, in accordance with standards set by the Competent Authority; (f) ensure good leadership; (g) participate in selection processes for the issuance of fishing vessels licence and fishing within the Beach Management Unit jurisdictional area to ensure equitable access to resources; (h) ensure fisheries licence fees are paid by Beach Management Unit members in a timely manner to the officer in charge of fisheries in the local government authority; (i) arbitrate to settle fisheries disputes amongst Beach Management Unit members, between Beach Management Units and between the Beach Management Unit and other institutions; (j) fill in a standard tally book indicating fish weight, value and price of fish and submit the data to an Authorized Officer in their locality by second day of the following month; (k) keep an updated register and submit quarterly reports on fisheries management and development activities to an Officer in charge of fisheries in the Local Government Authority; (2) Every Officer in charge of fisheries in the Local Government Authority shall be required to submit quarterly reports delivered by Beach Management Unit on fisheries management and development activities to the Director.
135. Where a member of Beach Management Unit has a conflict of interest on any matter brought before him on the execution of the above functions that member shall not exercise any function or make any decision in respect of that matter.
136. (1) The chairman of Beach Management Unit shall apply for registration of their unit to an Authorised Officer using Form 22 provided in the First Schedule in duplicate; (2) The Director shall: (a) provide certificate of registration of Beach Management Units prescribed in specimen QA/APP/15 provided in the Fifth Schedule to the Beach Management Units which applied and qualify for the registration; (b) establish a National Register of Beach Management Units; (c) appoint an Authorised Officer to be a registrar of Beach Management Units or collaborative fishers management units; (3) Every Officer in charge of fisheries in the Local Government Authority, shall in his area of jurisdiction, keep a register in Form 23 of all Beach Management Units provided in the First Schedule.
137. (1) The Director shall establish Zonal Enforcement Units in order to protect fish and its environment, fishery products and aquatic flora against unlawful dealers and the enforcement of the provisions of these regulations. (2) Each Zonal Enforcement Unit shall consist of centres which are prescribed in the Seventh Schedule to these regulations.
138. (1) Any person who makes an application for the- (a) registration of a fishing vessel; (b) certificate of approval or ownership; (c) fishing vessel licence; or (d) licence for fishing, collection or export of fish or fishery products; shall attach his photograph on the application form. (2) A photograph under sub-regulation (1) shall be a coloured passport size on a blue background taken within six months.
139. (1) A Fish Inspector shall take a precautionary action by closing any fish establishment if he is convinced that conditions in the establishment constitute a high risk to consumers health, or approximate economic fraud. (2) The Fish Inspector shall report the decision in sub-regulation (1) immediately to the Director who shall confirm the decision taken pending institution of an immediate auditing not exceeding three days from the date of confirmation. (3) The Director shall institute a verification audit on the decision taken in sub regulation (1) within three days. (4) Based on the audit report, the Director may decide to close the establishment temporarily pending full implementation of audit recommendations or may close it permanently. (5) The communication under this regulation shall be in any form, however, where a telephone or e-mail is used, the decision shall be confirmed in writing, immediately.
140. The Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, amend any of the Schedules under these regulations.
141. (1) The Fisheries Development Fund shall support the following- (a) protection, rehabilitation and enhancement of the habitat; (b) monitoring, control and surveillance of fisheries; (c) training and awareness raising related to management of fishery resources and environment; (d) facilitation of fisheries research; (e) improvement of infrastructure and facilities in the fishery industry; (f) fish post harvest loses reduction and quality of fish and fishery products; (g) development of aquaculture; (h) facilitation of fisheries statistical data collection, processing, analysis, publication and dissemination; (i) capacity building in fisheries; (j) enhancement of fish inspection and safety assurance regimes; (k) the fishing communities in case of natural disasters; and (l) any other activity as it may deem necessary for the proper implementation of the objectives of the Fund. (2) The monies accrued from the Fund shall not be issued to individuals or non institutional bodies.
142. (1) The Director shall assign from amongst fisheries employees, serve as secretariat to the Fund. (2) The Secretariat to the fund shall be responsible for the day to day administration of the Fund. (3) The Secretariat shall consist of- (i) the Fund Administrator; (ii) the Fund Accountant ; and (iii) supporting staff (4) Financial Provisions of the Fund shall include- (a) establishing of one or more separate accounts in a bank certified into which all monies received by the Fund shall be paid in and out; (b) keeping books of accounts and maintain proper records of its operations in accordance with Government accounting procedures; (c) preparing annual estimates of income and expenditure and once approved, adhere to the budget; (d) ensuring that the operations of the Fund are exercised in an economical, efficient and transparent manner; (e) disbursing funds in accordance with the Public Financial Act ; (f) managing the resources of the Fund in a prudent, efficient and transparent manner; (g) preparing and publishing monthly, quarterly, mid-year and annual reports which shall include- (i) an account of the operations of the Fund during the respective periods; (ii) a set of audited accounts; (iii) such other matters as may be prescribed; (5) The accounts of the Fund shall be audited by the Controller and Auditor General and the Minister shall lay the same before the Parliament.
143. (1) There is established a committee to be known as Fisheries Development Fund Committee which shall be responsible for the management of Fund. (2) The Committee shall be chaired by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry responsible for fisheries and shall consist of members from the following institutions- (a) Fisheries Sector; (b) Tanzania Fisheries Research Institute; (c) Legal Officer from the ministry responsible for fisheries; (d) Ministry responsible for Local Government; (e) Ministry responsible for finance; (f) Marine Park and Reserves Unit; (g) two representatives from the fishery industry one from capture fishery and another from aquaculture; (3) The Director shall be the Secretary of the committee. (4) The committee shall meet twice a year and the quorum at any meeting shall be two thirds of members. (5) The Committee shall be in office for a term of three years, which may be renewable once.
144. The Fisheries Development Fund Committee shall perform the following functions- (a) approve budget of the Fund; (b) approve financial audit reports; (c) set criteria for accessing and assessing application for Fund; and (d) take all such other actions which shall advance the objects of the Fund.
145. (1) . An Authorised Officer shall, in addition to powers conferred upon him under these regulations, have powers to - (a) enter with or without search warrant any fish and aquaculture establishment, market, shop, motor vehicle, vessel that he reasonably suspects of contravening the provisions of the Act and these Regulations or any other related legislation. (b) enter with or without search warrant, a foreign vessel that is in any fresh or marine water body or in port that he reasonably suspects of being used in connection with fishing or any other activity carried on contrary to these regulations. (2) An Authorised Officer in performing his duties may- (a) reasonably call on any person to assist him; (b) use such forces as is reasonably necessary; (c) require any person to do anything that appears reasonably necessary for the purpose of facilitating the performance of his duties; (d) order that any means of transportation including motor vehicle, vessel, bicycle, carts which is reasonably suspected be stopped; (e) search any premises, fish establishment which is reasonably suspected to stock or offer for sell prohibited illegal fishing gears; (f) search or examine any motor vehicle, vessel, an establishment or any thing on board thereof; (g) require any person on board of motor vehicle, vessel, in an establishment, in a shop or market to produce any document or thing related to that vessel or equipment or the persons on board thereof; (3) An authorised officer who has reasonable grounds to suspect that an offence has been committed under the Act and these Regulations by any person, including any person on board a motor vehicle or vessel or establishment, may, without warrant or other process- (a) seize the motor vehicle or vessel or establishment together with any fish, fishing gear or other equipment suspected of being used in the commission of an offence; or (b) arrest the person he suspects. (4) Where a motor vehicle, vessel, establishment or a thing is seized or a person is arrested under sub regulation (3) an authorised officer shall within a reasonable time, put the seized items under police custody and cause the person(s) arrested to be brought before a Magistrate’s court to answer a charge in connection with the offence.
146. (1) An Authorised Officer or a person appointed and assigned by the Director to exercise functions of Authorised Officer as stipulated in these regulations shall be issued with Identity Card prescribed in QA/APP/14 set out in the Fifth Schedule. (2) An Authorised Officer while exercising his functions shall carry the identity card. (3) An Authorised Officer shall upon ceasing to be an Authorised Officer, surrender immediately his identity card to the Director. (4) The Director shall revoke an identity card from an Authorised Officer who has proved to have abused the use of the identity card or convicted of any offence. (5) An Authorised Officer who loses his identity card and upon presentation of a police lost report to the Director who after being satisfied with reasons given shall be issued with a new identity card. (6) An Authorised Officer whose identity card is destroyed or defaced shall as soon as possible report the case to the Director who may issue a replacement card. (7) The Director shall keep and maintain a register of all Authorised Officers in which he shall record the names and particulars of identity cards issued by him.
147. The Fisheries Regulations, 2005 are hereby revoked.
SCHEDULES [For Schedules, refer to the full text here:http://extwprlegs1.fao.org/docs/pdf/tan171548.pdf]
