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aritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti has confirmed the implementation of a six-month moratorium on fishing licenses for ships measuring more than 30 gross tons (GT), saying the ministry will use the period to review licensing issues.

'€œWe received good news last week that the Law and Human Rights Ministry has agreed to sign the proposed moratorium, which will be in force for the next six months,'€ Susi told a press conference on Tuesday.

The moratorium, regulated by Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministerial Regulation No. 56/2014, not only prevents new fishing licenses from being issued to large fishing operations, it also outlaws the extension of licenses expiring within the six-month period.

Moreover, Susi said the ministry would use the time to review all 1,200 documented license holders for compliance to the currently enforced rules. She said the current ratio of documented to undocumented large fishing vessels stood at one-to-five.

In addition, the minister said the moratorium would allow her to start brainstorming for new regulations to be passed once the moratorium was removed.

'€œWe have to work on new laws [that would provide clearer demarcations] in preparation for the post-moratorium period, such as placing a quota for the monthly fishing time frame, the number of active vessels, ship size and capacity, as well as zoning,'€ Susi said, adding that there would no longer be year-round fishing operations.

Meanwhile, the ministry'€™s secretary general, Syarief Widjaja, said his office would be enforcing the existing ban on fishing methods long stipulated in Presidential Regulation No. 39/1980 about using trawls and small-diameter purse seine nets.

Syarief also hinted at the minister'€™s plans to launch a cash management scheme for small-time fishers using a debit-ready card, much like President Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo'€™s recently introduced health and education cards.

Syarief said the card was a co-branding solution that involved an unnamed state bank and allowed for the fair distribution of subsidized diesel fuel to fishermen.

'€œThe minister and the President will be launching this '€˜fisherman card'€™ in the near future,'€ he said.

In addition to the new quota-based regulations, Minister Susi revealed her plans to overhaul the foreign and domestic investment scheme for the country'€™s fishery industry.

She said the ministry would no longer allow foreign investments in fishing operations and would instead recommend interested parties invest in the local processing industry.

According to her, this new investment scheme allows revitalization of supporting industries such as cold storage and cultivation, which will in turn provide more local work opportunities and generate more non-tax state revenues (PNBP) from the fishing sector.

'€œWhen the new laws are enforced, all fishing operations will be required to process their catches on our shores,'€ Susi explained.

'€œWe'€™re not against foreign investments. [...] We just want our products landed on our shores, processed in our facilities, recorded in our portfolio and be exported by us.'€

She said that the scheme would come into effect next May, with the minimum target of pushing the country into becoming the third largest exporter of marine products in the ASEAN region within two or three years.

According to ministry data, last year the fishing sector managed to generate a meager Rp 300 billion (US$ 25.62 million) in non-tax income, despite the Rp 7 trillion funds allocated from the state budget. The businesswoman-turned-public servant said that she would increase the industry'€™s profit by 500 percent during her term.

Earlier in the day, Susi hosted a discussion with a large number of fisheries associations and commissions and apologized for not consulting with industry players about the moratorium.

'€œIf I came to you for permission, I'€™d never get it approved. But now we have time to set things straight and I assure you that I act for the benefit of the country,'€ she said.