After the recent derogation for a Turkish purse seiner in Mauritania to fish in a zone reserved for artisanal fisheries, "Senegalized" trawlers of Spanish origin are fishing for deep water shrimps in Liberia through the Senegal-Liberia agreement, supposedly for experimental purposes.
Transparency: Mauritania improves its score, but is still far from the goal
"The rich man's fish feeds on the poor man's sardinella"*
In this article, the author extracts from the recent report ‘Feeding a monster: How European aquaculture and animal feed industries are stealing food from West African communities’ the main findings related to the European Union and its Members States, and looks at how some of the recommendations may be implemented in the EU.
EU-Madagascar SFPA negotiations resume: Key issues for the future of small-scale fisheries in Madagascar
Seychelles FITI report: Stakeholders make recommendations regarding access by fleets of foreign origin
Seychelles is the first country in the world to publish a report that assesses the compliance against the transparency requirements of the FiTI standard. The author comments on the main findings of the Multi Stakeholder Group and highlights the recommendations for foreign fleets and the importance of understanding the value of local fisheries.
African artisanal fisheries at the forefront of the fight against predatory and opaque industrial fishing companies
Cameroon IUU yellow card: The EU should also sanction European companies hiding behind this country’s flag
What future for Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements?
In view of the global evaluation of the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements (SFPAs) that will be carried out by the Commission in 2021, the author highlights the key points which will need to be assessed from the perspective of the impacts on African coastal communities. The author also suggests essential improvements to be made for the future of SFPAs so that they better respond to the needs of these communities.
Improving scientific observer coverage in mixed Fisheries Agreements in West Africa
BirdLife Europe and Central Asia, CFFA and WWF release a joint paper with recommendations to harmonize the conditions for the embarkment of scientific observers on board EU vessels and ask that data collection include more specifications on the biological information required, including information on bycatch species.
Small scale fisheries at risk: Madagascar signs destructive fishing agreements with Chinese investors
Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement negotiations between the EU and Mauritania: staying on course
As a new round of negotiations between the EU and Mauritania is expected to start soon, this position paper recalls the demands of the Mauritanian artisanal fisheries sector, highlighting technical conditions, such as the access to octopus to be reserved for local artisanal fishers, the zoning for trawlers to be maintained, and landings of small pelagics to be kept. Governance issues are also key, such as transparency, especially regarding the activities of other foreign fleets; and the urgent need for the SFPA to contribute to regional management for shared stocks.
Making Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements’ evaluations more efficient
BirdLife Europe and Central Asia, CFFA and WWF publish a joint paper with recommendations to improve the process and the content of evaluations by including the assessment of impacts of the EU fleet on ecosystems, of the transparency and non-discrimination clause, the needs of women, the implementation of the social clause and the contribution to SDGs.
Why the current African Union’s blue economy strategy threatens small-scale fisheries
Investment and transparency in EU-Africa fisheries relations: what about joint ventures?
In this joint position, CAOPA and CFFA request that, in the framework of the future EU–Africa partnership, which focuses on sustainable investments and the promotion of good governance in fisheries, a set of principles be defined to ensure that fisheries joint ventures operate in a transparent manner, do not compete with local artisanal fisheries, and are in line with the objectives of sustainable fisheries development in the third country concerned.
Issues for local artisanal communities in a potential future EU-Guinea SFPA
How large is the Chinese Distant Water Fishing fleet?
The latest ODI report presents the scale of the Chinese flagged, owned and/or operated DWF fleet and highlights the gaps and challenges in China’s governance capacity, but the methodology and the figures need to be taken with a pinch of salt. Using specific examples, CFFA reviews the key findings and implications for the West Africa region.
EU-Liberia SFPA: what should a potential future protocol look like?
10 priorities for the future of Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements
CFFA and six other European and African organisations and their networks publish a joint paper with recommendations to improve the sustainability of EU-African fishing arrangements, including transparency, compliance with European obligations, increased scientific knowledge and the rethinking of the financial support objectives.
Financial compensation, support for development and transparency, the key issues at stake in the negotiation of the EU-Madagascar SFPA
The Government of Madagascar has made it clear that it expects to derive greater benefits from its tuna resources through higher financial compensation. If this compensation is coupled with well-directed sectoral support for local fisheries, this could help develop Madagascar's small-scale fishing sector, which provides thousands of jobs and is essential for food security.