As part of their fishing agreement, China offers compensation for ’the damages that Chinese trawlers inflict to Guinean artisanal fishermen’

Various articles published in the Guinean press in the last month indicate that, as part of a fishing agreement between Guinea and China, which allows for (at least) 30 chinese trawlers to fish in zones where artisanal fishermen are also fishing, some leaders from the National Union of Guinean artisanal fishermen have received compensation funds. A fisherman, representing young Guinean artisanal fishermen, highlights in an interview that, ’every six months, China offers 150.000 USdollars, as compensation for the damages that the chinese trawlers inflict to artisanal fishermen’. Last month, at the occasion of the launch of the ’Chinese hospital’ built in Kamsar, this amount was given publically by the Minister to a leader of the National Union of Guinean artisanal fishermen. That raised questions and anger from young fishermen, as they are not benefitting from these funds. Fishermen interviewed also denounced the intervention of the authorities in the nomination of the National Union of Guinean artisanal fishermen leaders. The press articles report that the fishermen leaders who received the compensation were later arrested in relation to the misappropriation of these funds, but rapidly freed under pressure from the authorities.

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