Although the government of Suriname had promised in 2021 to issue 150 SK fishing licences to Guyanese fishermen, following an agreement between the two countries this has not yet been done and Suriname’s President is now saying that further discussions have to be carried out.
President of Suriname Chan Santokhi, who provided an update this week to the Sunday Stabroek said that the matter was still on the “agenda”. He said his government was not running away from its responsibility to make a “proper decision.”
In 2021, an agreement between Suriname and Guyana was reached for 150 fisherfolk here to be granted licences by Paramaribo starting January 2022. This is still to be realised after pushback from licence holders in Nickerie who currently rent licences to Guyanese and stand to lose revenue.