As the IOTC continues to debate issues such as access allocation systems, management measures and the future of tuna fisheries governance, the question is no longer whether small-scale fisheries should be recognised, but how.
Can the EU modernise its fishing fleet without increasing fishing pressure? What is at stake for distant water fishing in Africa?
The Commission study on the future of the EU fishing fleet highlights the challenge of balancing ecological sustainability, decarbonisation, and economic viability. The article explores whether fleet modernisation should automatically be considered an increase in fishing capacity, and discusses the implications of this debate for fisheries management both within the EU and in African waters where EU distant-water fleets operate.
The EU is debating its Fisheries Policy – Africa should pay attention
Beneficial ownership transparency in OACPS fisheries: strong commitments, but slow implementation
What could the EU learn from China’s approach to distant-water fisheries?
EU fisheries governance should shift from a vessel-based to an enterprise-based model, drawing on the Chinese distant-water fishing model while noting its limits. EU progress in transparency and beneficial ownership control is highlighted, alongside calls for conditional subsidies, expanded compliance, and broader corporate responsibility globally.
To subsidise or not to subsidise, that is not the question
SFPA monies must reach the shore: What Mauritian artisanal fishers expect from the future fisheries agreement with the EU
Although the EU-Mauritius SFPA generates measurable macroeconomic gains, these benefits remain largely invisible to small-scale fishers. The authors highlight weak transparency, limited coastal development impact, governance issues, and inequitable access to resources, calling for a more inclusive, community-centred fisheries partnership model.
Aligning ocean governance and fisheries policy: what the EU Ocean Act must deliver
EU-Mauritania SFPA: a tool to achieve sustainability?
The Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement (SFPA) between the EU and Mauritania is an opportunity to implement the “new generation” of agreements announced by the Commission, which should focus on the equitable sharing of benefits, local development, and the well-being of coastal communities that depend on fishing.
From crisis to adaptation: African small-scale fishing communities are leading in climate resilience
Climate change is transforming the environmental and social landscapes of African coasts. While small-scale fishing communities are suffering first hand the impacts of climate change, they are also developing community-led and nature-based solutions to adapt and become resilient. In this article, the author goes through some examples and gives recommendations on how the EU can support these initiatives.
WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies: Progress with many open questions
Francisco Mari, advocacy officer for global food security, agricultural trade and maritime policy at Bread for the World, reviews the WTO agreement on fisheries subsidies; following its recent entry into force. For this, he points at what till remains unaddressed and the costs and opportunities for developing countries, including the impact on small-scale fisheries.
Regionalising biological rest periods in West Africa: ecological gain or social shock?
Strengthening Inshore Exclusive Zones with small-scale fishers: A path to food security and biodiversity
Small-scale fishing communities depend on the coast and inshore waters for their livelihoods. Many African countries now recognise small-scale fisheries’ role in achieving climate and biodiversity goals. The EU should support this by strengthening priority access and funding co-management in coastal waters.
Behind a deadly shipwreck in Mauritania, some dubious European interests
Dormant but not dead: Why The Gambia - EU fisheries agreement still matters
Dormant SFPAs should not simply be considered as a pause. Since the framework agreements are still in place, they should be utilised for dialogue on science and sustainable fisheries between the two parties. Dormant agreements can also play a role in the broader regional network of SFPAs as they can help monitor and coordinate research across borders. Finally, these agreements can also continue fostering coherence between EU funding instruments.
From fishing access deals to supporting fishing communities: a new course for EU fisheries funding in Africa?
Putting fishing communities first: Priorities for negotiating a fair EU-Seychelles Fisheries Agreement
Joint statement: “FAO and its members must address the destructive impacts of industrial feedlot aquaculture”
At the occasion of the 20th session of the FAO subcommittee on trade, more than 19 CSOs and small-scale fisheries organisations, the signatories ask that FAO and its members adopt “blue food systems” that align with the ecosystem-based approach, the principles of social equity and animal welfare, and that they stop supporting the mass production of seafood through industrial feedlot aquaculture without consideration for the environment or local communities.
Towards a fair and sustainable EU strategy for fisheries external action
In this position paper, CFFA contributes to the Commission open consultation on an EU strategy for fisheries external action. In it, CFFA calls for a strategy that looks into policy coherence for development, including a focus on food security, the importance of participation of stakeholders and of including human rights safeguards. In the second part of the position, CFFA looks at the coherence in the resources put forward to fund this external strategy, as essential for effective action.
