Fishers from Ventanas have new facilities thanks to AES Chile’s Sustainable Fishing Bay Program

The initiative included the construction of twelve Mecano-type warehouses and two bathrooms for men and women, with all the necessary electrical and sanitary installations.

The fishers of the Ventanas union have a new infrastructure that will allow them to improve their working conditions, thanks to the joint work of their leaders, AES Chile and the support of the Municipality of Puchuncaví.

As part of the Sustainable Fishing Bay Program, this Friday the warehouses and bathrooms for the Ventanas Union Wharf were inaugurated.

The project included the construction of twelve Mecano-type warehouses in three 20-foot containers and two bathrooms for men and women, with all the electrical and sanitary installations.

The opening ceremony was led by the mayor of Puchuncaví, Marcos Morales, the president of Ventanas Fishermen’s Union, Manuel Bernal, the Regional Ministerial Secretary of Energy (Seremi) of Valparaiso, Hernán Dinamarca, and executives of AES Chile.

With the new facilities, the Fishermen’s Union will be able to work in better conditions, optimizing their travel times and having suitable facilities.

“We are very grateful, because this will allow us to change our work system by facilitating the transfer to the dock, since it was difficult to move the equipment to the boxers we had in the cove,” said the president of the Union of Artisanal Fishermen of Ventanas, Manuel Bernal.

Along with thanking AES Chile “for this important investment,” the mayor of Puchuncaví, Marcos Morales, said that “this helps us to see that we can actually carry out valuable projects that will help our fishers be more comfortable in a safe place and to do a job worthy of recognition."

Meanwhile, the Seremi of Energy, Hernán Dinamarca, said that “this is a sign of the new times in what we call shared value among businesses and communities. It is a very concrete example of the work between a company and a union that is in the best interest of the fishing community.”

The manager of the AES Chile’s Centro Complex, Francisco Ficara, stressed that, as a company, “one of our main goals is to support the communities by implementing social projects, through which we have been able to bring to life the ideas stemming from the needs identified by the social organizations and their leaders.” In this sense, he added that “we are very happy that fishers can have an easier life and a simpler job.”

Judith Fernandez, head of Community Development of the company, said that “as AES Chile, we are very proud of the work we have done together and in collaboration with the Ventanas Fishermen’s Union. Our relationship with them started many years ago and we will continue to support them as they face the challenges ahead.”