Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI
photo nigrizia.it
by Cosimo GrazianiBanjul (Agenzia Fides) – In West African countries, the local fishing industry is in crisis. European countries are also to blame for this. Gambian activist Mustapha Manneh also spoke out at the United Nations World Oceans Conference, which took place this year in Nice from June 9 to 13.The core of the problem is the fishing of local species to produce fish feed for aquaculture farms in Greece and Turkey. The phenomenon affects the entire region and has the same characteristics: local species such as sardines and bonga are caught in large quantities and processed locally into fish feed for aquaculture; the produced material is shipped to Turkey, Greece, and China (these are the currently known destinations), where it is used in fish farms. The fish produced, in the case of Turkish farms, are mainly sea bream and bass. These farmed fish reach the stores of the destination countries and the tables of consumers, unaware that the consumed fillets are causing social and economic problems for entire populations on the African continent, where in the meantime, hundreds of families have lost their only source of income. As Manneh points out, the fishermen can no longer bring home enough fish to feed their families and face ever-increasing fuel costs: Whereas they used to be able to catch large quantities of fish in a shorter time, using only 20 liters of diesel, they now have to stay away longer to ensure a sufficient catch, and the amount of fuel required has at least tripled.The fishermen are not the only ones hit hard: an entire social fabric has been affected by this problem. In Senegal and Gambia, the fish was caught by men and sold by women, a system that, in its own way, also ensured relative social and economic equality. Now that catches are scarce, markets have disappeared in many cases, along with the stalls run by women, who must now find other sources of income. Another problem that fishermen in West Africa have faced in recent years is the presence of fishing boats from other countries—for example, from China—which significantly reduces the availability of fish to catch. In Guinea-Bissau, fishing boats from other countries often use trawling, which is prohibited due to the damage it can cause to ecosystems. The presence of foreign fishing boats in African waters is often regulated by agreements such as those concluded by the European Union with these countries. According to Manneh, their presence in Gambia is viewed with growing hostility by the local population, especially young people. The EU signed the last of a long line of fishing protocols with Gambia in 2019, which expire on July 30. This protocol stipulated that vessels from Spain, Greece, and France could fish in Gambian territorial waters for an annual fee of €550,000, a fee that was intended, among other things, to finance measures to protect the marine ecosystem. Similar agreements have been concluded with other countries in the region: In the case of Guinea-Bissau, the agreement was approved by the European Parliament last April and provides for compensation of up to €100 million per year. Alongside this agreement, the Parliament adopted a recommendation calling on the European Commission and Guinea-Bissau to improve fishing controls in the African country’s territorial waters. The fishing crisis in West African countries is also fueling illegal emigration to Europe. From the coasts of Senegal, it is possible to reach the Canary Islands, which belong to Spain. While reaching the Canary Islands represents an alternative to poverty for many, others become smugglers for the same reason, earning a living by transporting migrants. In Gambia, earnings for a single trip on a boat full of migrants can reach up to €200,000, an unimaginable sum for a Gambian fisherman. (Agenzia Fides, 10/7/2025)
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