June 2019 — NFDS congratulates Mark Ssemakula on his new position as Forestry and Range Resources Officer with Botswana’s Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism. Mark will be working on conservation and land rehabilitation in the North-East with the Department of Forestry and Range Resources (DFRR) in Francistown, Botswana.
Mark has been a part of the NFDS team for eight years, starting out as an intern having recently graduated from his degree in Namibia. Mark has been involved in many projects ranging from promoting fisheries for food and nutrition benefits in some of the poorest countries in Africa to tracking foreign industrial fishing vessels as they illegally fish in African waters.
Per Erik Bergh, Chief Executive Officer of NFDS stated, “Mark has made a significant contribution to all areas of our work and will be greatly missed by our team. We wish him well in his new position and I feel sure that his broad experience and positive and professional approach will prove to be great assets for his role in government. We look forward to Mark’s continued involvement in Stop Illegal Fishing, where he serves as Deputy Coordinator.”
Sandy Davies, Technical Director said, “I've enjoyed many travels with Mark, and he has flown the flag for NFDS and Stop Illegal Fishing across the globe, either speaking at conferences or working on projects. Although Mark will be missed very much, I am delighted to see him moving into such an important area of work in Botswana, I am confident Mark will do an excellent job and we all look forward to following his future."
