Following an eight year hiatus, the European Union and Senegal on Thursday signed a new five-year Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement. The agreement will allow up to 38 EU boats to fish in Senegalese waters in return for a EUR8.69 million payment by the EU. This represents good value for money for both parties and, as with all of the EU’s fishing partnerships, the agreement is based on the principles of resource sustainability, good governance, and local development.
As part of the deal the EU will invest EUR750,000 a year into developing the local fisheries sector. In particular, support will be directed towards improving surveillance, combating illegal fishing, and promoting scientific cooperation.
Local artisanal fishermen will also directly benefit from the conservation and rehabilitation of spawning areas and vulnerable ecosystems on which their livelihoods depend on.
The Senegalese Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Economy, Omar Gueye, and the European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Karmenu Vella, will meet Thursday to stress the importance of reactivating this sustainable partnership between two of the major fishing players in West Africa after eight years without agreement. The partnership will further strengthen the region’s general governance of fisheries and its fight against illegal fishing.