ARTICLE - FISHING BOATS

A FIFTH BOAT FOR HAITI IS PLANNED
(Haiti Libre) -

"Rêve de Mousse", a wooden fishing boat, 15 meters long, will be the fifth boat after the Mystère, the Mercenaire, the Breizh da Viken and the Val d'orge, to be sent to Haiti by the association "Solidarité Pêche", founded in 2003 by the fisherman Jean-Pierre Coïc.

Unlike the four previous boats, the "Rêve de Mousse" is not used for fishing. Solidarité-Pêche would turn it into a clinic boat, which would serve to provide access to medical care for coastal villages. It will not be a hospital ship. The objective is to make it a 'sanitary boat', and will be used by the Association Espoir Santé, based in Guadeloupe, and who have a dispensary in Port-au-Prince. Renovations will be necessary: engine repair and development of a bridge to support a dispensary and two cabins for a doctor and a nurse. The medical team will be able to travel to multiple villages along the coast of Haiti.

Fishermen who are using the first four boats have seen their incomes rise, "Their life has changed, they went from a precarious to a real business. They are envied today. The life of a fish merchan has also changed because they now have regular supplies." Boats provided by Solidarité Pêche allow fishermen to use FAD (Fish Aggregating Device), rafts under which clusters of fish come. The Mercenaire, and the Breizh da Viken are used to pull the pirogues to the DCP and bring them back to port with cargo.

The handling of Val d'Orge, the last boat of 18 meters, sent to Haiti in May 2011, is more difficult for the Haitian. The boat is bigger, with more complex instruments. "It will be necessary to do training. For now, Haitian sailors only navigate visually. We'll have to teach them how to use the instruments, to fish further and deeper" explains Jean-Pierre Coïc who envisages bringing a small team of Haitian fishermen to Concarneau (France), to participate in the rehabilitation of the "Rêve de Mousse", and provide them with the necessary training for the navigation of the Val d'Orge "For accommodations, the organization can provide them. The big problem may be that of obtaing a visa..."