(Tuesday September 06, 2016 Issue)
A
four-day campaign co-funded by the EU against illegal fishing off the West
Africa Coast has shown concrete results in tackling illegal fishing in Western
Africa.
From
28 August to 1 September 2016, the West African Sub-Regional Fisheries Commission
(SRFC) organised a regional operation at sea to control vessels fishing in the
exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Gambia, Senegal, Guinea Bissau and Guinea.
For
the first time, the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) has taken part in
such an exercise.
Under
the coordination of SRFC, five patrol vessels and about 30 inspectors coming
from The Gambia, Senegal, Guinea Bissau and Guinea took part in the “Pedro
Cardoso Naco Operation”.
Some
82 vessels were controlled and 14 infringements were detected. Two industrial
Chinese vessels were identified as fishing illegally in Guinea, in a zone
closed to fishing activities for reasons of biological recovery. One of them
managed to escape, but the other one was sent to port to be sanctioned.
Commissioner
Mimica said: “The damage caused by illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing
(IUU) is undisputed.
In
the Gulf of Guinea – the region in the world most affected by this – IUU
fishing accounts for more than a third of catches, to a value of up to € 1.5 billion.
This
operation is a concrete example of the European Union’s added value in
supporting good cooperation between coastal states, regional organisations,
development partners and technical agencies to fight illegal fishing and ensure
that fisheries resources are used in a sustainable way to the benefit of
coastal states and coastal communities.”
Commissioner
Vella said: “Fighting illegal fishing is a political priority for the EU. Since
we adopted new rules in 2010 to strengthen the EU’s fight against IUU fishing
we have been working with countries around the world and in particular in West
Africa to help them join us in this fight.
Regional
cooperation is key to fight the sophisticated networks behind illegal fishing.
It is therefore very rewarding to see Western Africa pioneering this joint
approach, and for the EU to be able to participate through the presence of an
expert from our European Fisheries Control Agency. We hope this will be the first
of many such campaigns.”
Background
The
operation was co-funded by the EU programme Governance in the Western African
Marine Eco-Region (GO-WAMER) and the World Bank’s West African Fisheries
Programme (WAFP).
The
GO-WAMER project aims at improving marine resources governance in seven Western
African countries: Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra
Leone and Cape-Verde.
Activities
are implemented at national and regional level, in partnership with national
authorities and regional organisations such as the SRFC. Funded by the EU, this
€10.5 million programme is coordinated by the United Nation Development
Programme (UNDP).
The
SRFC is a regional organisation based in Dakar and composed of seven countries:
Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone and
Cape-Verde. It aims at improving cooperation in terms of monitoring, control,
surveillance and harmonization of fisheries policies.
On
a regular basis, the SRFC organizes joint operations at sea, pooling control
efforts and facilitating exchange of information between countries.
This
operation was called “Pedro Cardoso Nanco”, in the memory of a Bissau-Guinean
fisheries inspector who died at sea after 35 years of activities. He had
participated in many sub-regional campaigns organised by the SRFC. Five patrol
vessels (of 20 to 50m) were involved in the operation. The coordination centre
was based in Bissau in the FISCAP Fisheries Monitoring Centre (FMC).
An
advanced post was also set up in Conakry.
In
total, some 30 fisheries inspectors coming from the 4 countries took part in
this exercise.
The European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) is an EU body established in 2005 to organize operational coordination of fisheries control and inspection activities by EU Member States.
