Guinea-Bissau, one of Africa’s poorest countries, is afflicted by chronic malnutrition that is affecting one quarter of its 1.8 million population, according to the World Food Programme.
Fisheries offer an important way for the country to improve this situation. Guinea-Bissau’s exclusive economic zone, which stretches 200 nautical miles out from its coastline, covers 106,000km2 and some of West Africa’s most abundant fishing grounds, according to a 2017 paper published in Frontiers in Marine Science.
Small-scale fishing provides over 35% of citizens’ animal protein intake and employs more than 255,000 people, the paper notes. But much of the economic and nutritional potential of the country’s fisheries are threatened by illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
The paper puts the annual landed value of Guinea-Bissau’s fisheries at US$416 million, before explaining that more than half of this ($260.7 million) is captured by illegal and unreported methods. Of the remaining landed value, only 31% is claimed by the local economy, through fishing fees and agreements.
To curb illegal fishing, Guinea-Bissau cooperates with its neighbours via regional agreements. But capacity problems and corruption among officials are hindering the country’s attempts to police fishing in its waters.
Industrial fishing in Guinea-Bissau is carried out by foreign vessels chartered or reflagged to the country. According to the Frontiers in Marine Science paper, such catches are generally landed elsewhere, notably in the Canary Islands and Senegal.
The paper estimates that, in 2017, legal catch by industrial vessels amounted to 280,620 tonnes, while their illegal catch was 62,000 tonnes. Meanwhile, small-scale catches – comprising artisanal, subsistence and recreational fishing – fell from 44,700 tonnes in 2013 to around 27,800 tonnes.
The Institute for Security Studies, a policy think-tank headquartered in South Africa, has also been surveying this issue. In November 2021, it reported that illegal fishing, especially by industrial-scale operators, must be curbed for West African nations to fairly benefit from their own waters.