Draft:IUU Fishing in the Gulf of Guinea

Satellite image of the Gulf of Guinea

Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) is a term that describes a range of maritime practices by fisheries that in some way violate the laws and regulations set unto them. Although a global issue, IUU fishing is particularly prevalent in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG), a stretch of water part of the Atlantic Ocean in the region of West Africa. Research around IUU fishing is a multi-disciplinary effort and has in recent years become a significant priority to relevant academics, with a special focus on the GoG. Because of the illicit nature of crime and the remoteness of the high seas, it is often hard to effectively monitor and diagnose the problem in its entirety.

Extent

Although hard to monitor, academics are largely in agreement that the problem is extensive and far-reaching. Over the last 10 years, the GoG has become a hotspot for IUU fishing and maritime crime; Up to 40% of the fish caught in West African waters is estimated to be from IUU fishing, the highest level in the world. Academic literature, governments and international organisations alike have recognised the high proportion of maritime crime and IUU fishing that the region is home to. This is significant because, although a relatively small body of water, the GoG is a key global shipping route and hosts around 25% of Africa's maritime traffic. The explosion in IUU fishing and other maritime crimes in the GoG can be linked to a range of things including, increasing population growth and economic insecurity as well as a number of hydrocarbon discoveries in the region. Despite this collective agknowledgement, the inherent secretive nature of criminal activity makes it difficult for those in the discipline of criminology to reach a completely accurate conclusion of the extent of the problem.

IUU practices

IUU fishing practices can present themselves in many forms. Overfishing is the most common illegal fishing practice, which is when fisheries ignore quotas set for specific species so that their catch surpasses the rate by which they can replenish. The umbrella term also includes fishing species that are off limit or ignoring 'closed seasons' when a species is temporarily protected, often due to breeding schedules. Unreported and unregulated fishing are just as problematic as illegal fishing; fisheries may misreport their catch or fail to fly a flag on their vessel. IUU practices take place both on coastal waters and on the high seas. Like much maritime crime, IUU fishing is often driven by economic incentive which is compounded by a high success rate due to many states' failures to effectively regulate and monitor their waters.

Root causes

The root causes of IUU fishing in the GoG are important to agknowledge because without doing such it is impossible for the issue to be lessened. As previously mentioned, IUU is largely driven by economic incentive. In West Africa, many states suffer from economic underdevelopment as a legacy of their colonial histories. Studies have shown a direct correlation with maritime crime (more specifically the human impacts such as trafficking) and economic decline in the area. Poverty and unemployment can drive people to criminal activity such as IUU fishing and even trafficking practices in order to support themselves and their families.

Additionally, population growth and increasing food insecurity in the region has lead to more demand for fish. This demand has put pressure on those in the industry and has lead to a reliance on IUU practices in order to keep up with the market and maximise profits. For example, increased demand on fish stock often leads to more extensive fishery activity outside of coastal waters and further into the high seas which allows IUU practices to slip under the radar.

The oil industry

The process of oil bunkering

The oil industry plays a role in maritime criminal activity in the GoG. Oil supply in the region is extensive and generates a vast amount of wealth. The oil that the area produces each year is considered to be equivalent in volume to 40% of the total produced from all 27 EU states . Despite this, oil money is often only accessible to governments and large companies. Those excluded from the income the industry can provide often turn to illegal means. Oil theft involves the stealing of crude oil from large oil companies either through tapping into pipelines directly or at various stages in the shipping and transportation process. In the GoG, oil theft is particularly rife at ports in Nigeria because fuel is subsidised heavily so it can be sold on in other neighbouring countries at a higher rate. Oil bunkering is the practice of refuelling ships. There is a direct link between oil bunkering and IUU because it means that fisheries can stay out at sea for longer, which makes them more likely to engage in overfishing. There is also a causational effect on workers onboard the fisheries who are then forced to work for longer.

Consequences on social welfare

IUU fishing and other maritime crimes have strong impacts on social welfare. Human trafficking and forced labour are prevalent with illegal fisheries. People often board fisheries willingly, looking for work, not knowing that they will be exploited. This comes in many forms including the withholding of passports and pay as well as poor working and living conditions. In 2022, 60 people were rescued from two fishing vessels off the coast of Namibia after being forced to engage in IUU fishing practices after being trafficked from Asia on a Chinese trawler. Not only are fishery workers caught up in the human consequences of maritime crime but another social issue that exists readily is kidnapping of ship crew for ransom. Between 2018 and 2019, there was a 50% rise in the number of crew kidnapped in the GoG.

Geopolitical factors

The region bordering the GoG is made up of over 18 individual sovereign states, which brings its own set of unique challenges. Previous hotspots for maritime crime have traditionally been isolated to one, or a small group of states, such as piracy off the coast of Somalia. The patchwork nature of West Africa and its waters adds a complex geopolitical element to the fight against IUU fishing and blue crime. Criminal activity is harder to monitor and regulate because boats are able to cross from one border to the next quickly. A regional response is suggested by many, yet cooperation in the area is a long standing issue, largely due to the legacies left from the colonial era. Individual state interests and complex historical relations are an obstacle to truly getting IUU in the GoG under control.

Existing Regulatory efforts

Port State Measures Agreement

Fisheries in the GoG are policed by a number of different legislations. Primarily the United Nations Laws of the Seas (UNCLOS) which is the main legal outline for ocean governance. Additionally, Regional Fishery Management Organizations (RFMOs) take sections of water under their responsibility. West African waters are mainly governed by the Fishery Committee for the Eastern Central Atlantic (CECAF). Regional organisations such as The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) and Gulf of Guinea Commission (GGC) have all labelled IUU as a priority.

Another key legal framework in the fight against IUU is the Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA) which came into force in 2016 and was the first international agreement to address IUU lead by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The PSMA outlined that vessels identified to be engaging in IUU practices would not be able to dock in member state ports to sell their catch or refuel. In 2022 the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies enforced a ban on subsidies for IUU fisheries.

While these have been significant advances in the global efforts against IUU, it is up to states to sign these agreements and comply with them. The GoG remains an area of high IUU levels because of a chronic lack of effective monitoring and enforcement.

Academic research

As previously stated, it is extremely difficult to track and identitfy the problem and the secretive nature of IUU fisheries makes traditional methodologies of academic research impossible. Therefore, researchers have had to turn to alternatives to methods such as interviews in order to figure out the extent of the problem in the region. Illegal practicies cannot be ignored in maritime studies as they make up such a large part of what goes on, and many fishery operations in the GoG would be unprofitable and therefore inexplicable without it. In order to bypass this problem, researchers are gradually investing in the use of satellites for monitoring and research purposes. Academics from a variety of fields are combining forces in order to overcome this obstacle and to expose vessels in the GoG region and around the world that engage in IUU practices.

Future Solutions

It has been proposed by some that international efforts are required to tackle IUU in the GoG. Both the EU and the US have outlined strategic input for helping address the issue. The US have conducted training and monitoring exercises in the region under the Military Command AFRICOM in an attempt to better equip personnel in the region. The EU operates a carding system whereby they label states red, yellow or green depending on the prevalence of IUU fishing in that country, in the hope of encouraging states to prioritise these issues by threatening their trade potential with the EU. Some academics have criticised this approach, arguing that the only sustainable solutions will come from within the region itself. Civil society actors also play a role, such as the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) and the African marine mammal conservation organisation (Ammco). Despite the undeniable effort from West Africa and the rest of the world to tackle IUU in the Gulf of Guinea, it remains a noteable problem for the region.