After a high-level meeting in December 2020, negotiations have been relaunched between the EU and Madagascar for the renewal of the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement (SFPA), a tuna access agreement whose last protocol expired on 31 December 2018.
For the Malagasy authorities, the priority of these negotiations is to obtain better economic benefits from the tuna resources present in the waters of the Big Island for part of the year. In an interview at the end of May, the Minister in charge of fisheries in Madagascar gave the figure of 40 million euros expected over the duration of the future protocol, compared to just over 6 million euros for the 2015-2018 protocol. It should be recalled in this respect that the countries of the South West Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission (SWIOFC/CPSOOI) adopted in 2019, Guidelines on Minimum Terms and Conditions for Foreign Fisheries Access. These Guidelines stress the need for rational and responsible exploitation of fisheries resources, but also the importance of standardising and harmonising financial compensation for access to tuna resources in their waters, "with a minimum of twelve percent (12%) of the current average market value of tuna and tuna-like resources".
Questions raised by European stakeholders during the discussions on these guidelines remain, including how this 12% will be calculated, which could be either in relation to the value of the total tuna resources in the EEZs of the participating States or in relation to the value of specific catches made by authorised vessels. Given that the market value of tuna and tuna-like species are variable, it is also important to know how the coastal States will be able to calculate what 12% of the average market value of the resources represents when they fix the price of the licences in advance. Finally, it should be known whether these payments will include the remuneration made by the vessel for management costs.
Nevertheless, whatever the basis of calculation, it is legitimate for the Malagasy authorities to want fair financial compensation, which takes into account factors such as management costs, the value of the fish, operating costs and the costs of Monitoring, Control and Surveillance.
Effective and transparent use of sector support is a key issue for fishing communities
African and European civil society, as well as African artisanal fisheries organisations, are urging that transparency, the fight against IUU fishing, food security for local populations, and the promotion of sustainable small-scale fisheries be put at the heart of partnerships such as the EU-Madagascar SFPA.
In the last EU-Madagascar SFPA protocol, 700,000 EUR per year were earmarked to support Madagascar's sectoral fisheries policy, in particular "support for small-scale and traditional fishing, monitoring, control and surveillance of fishing activities and, more specifically, the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, capacity building for Malagasy fisheries research or capacity to manage access to and use of marine ecosystems and fisheries resources". This commitment was welcomed by civil society and Malagasy fishing communities.
However, today disappointment prevails. There is no visible impact of this sectoral support for small-scale fishers, and no information has been made public on how these funds have been used. A Malagasy small-scale fisher expressed his frustration: "What about sectoral support, especially the part that was supposed to be allocated to artisanal and traditional fishing? Nothing concrete has been done to my knowledge. We just want to work, with a minimum of support that ensures decent living and working conditions, which is not the case despite several years of partnership with the EU. Currently, our Ministry is negotiating this new partnership with the EU, and, as far as I know, no consultation with the bona fide stakeholders, especially the fishing communities, has been undertaken”.
Despite the earmarked support for small-scale fisheries in the EU protocol, there is very little impact for them, and no information regarding how these funds were used. Photo: Sandy Manoa/Unsplash.
However, beyond the lack of transparency and consultation of the stakeholders regarding the use of the fisheries agreement sectoral support, the lack of local benefits for fishing communities reflects above all the difficulties in implementing Madagascar's sectoral policy, whether for protecting artisanal and traditional fishing activities or in the fight against IUU fishing.
Small-scale fishers and Malagasy NGOs call for a zone reserved exclusively for artisanal fisheries
There are about 100,000 small-scale fishers in Madagascar, supporting more than 400,000 people, and their contribution to food security is essential. But their activities are hampered by industrial shrimp trawlers, which fish very close to the coast, negatively affecting coastal eco-systems and destroying their nets.
In principle, industrial shrimp fishing is prohibited within two miles of the coast, but, according to the FAO, "the texts on which the principle of this prohibition is based are obscure and open to various interpretations". Considering that there is no law providing real protection for the fishing zones of small-scale fishers, the Malagasy network Mihari, which brings together more than two hundred small-scale fisher's associations and some twenty NGO partners, recommended, in a 2017 motion, "to grant, by law, the country's coastal communities an exclusive right to fish on a coastal strip to be defined according to the regions [...] and to strengthen the control of the activities of national and foreign fishing boats operating in Madagascar's territorial waters, by ensuring that community fishing zones and standards on fishing gear and techniques are respected.
Will the new shrimp access policy better protect small-scale fishermen?
In April 2021, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (MAEP) launched a call for proposals to grant 50 shrimp fishing exploitation rights to Malagasy companies. The fishing zones have also been redrawn (see map below). This redrawing has resulted in five fishing zones: four on the west coast and one on the east coast, which is less rich in resources. The objective of this reform is "to improve the exploitation of shrimp resources, while guaranteeing the sustainable management of the fishery".
But will this really be the case?
In 2020, 43 shrimp trawlers, most of them from GAPCM member companies, had received licences. For the 2021 season, with the reformed access policy, a larger number of licences - 47 licences rather than 50, i.e. five more than the previous year - have been allocated. Fishing boats are authorised by area. For example, in the Mahajunga region, some fifteen trawlers, which were already active in previous years and belong to companies whose owners are French, Japanese or Chinese, were authorised to fish this year in zones B and C.
There is no public information on which boats are applying for new licences, but this situation worries the MIHARI network: "We fear incursions by these large companies into our fishing zones, especially as no delimitation has been carried out so far for the three categories of fishers, namely industrial fishers, artisanal fishers and traditional fishers. The destruction of sensitive areas, especially the habitat of numerous marine species, is also a concern. And that's not all! Trawlers could catch more fish than they are allowed to", explained the national president of the network.
The Malagasy authorities seem to be well aware of the problem. In a recent press release, the MAEP emphasised that "the delimitation of exclusive fishing zones for small-scale and industrial fishing is also part of this reform", also confirming that strategies have been envisaged to avoid conflicts between small-scale fishers and industrial or artisanal fishers. Indeed, the decree on shrimp fisheries management indicates (art 15) that shrimp trawlers can operate beyond the 2 miles zone.
But in reality, these good intentions to protect small-scale fishers risk being swept away by the reality of industrial shrimp fishing, with greater fishing pressure - 47 trawlers instead of 43. Furthermore, given that, according to the FAO, more than half of the annual shrimp catch is taken within the two-mile zone, the pressure by trawlers on the coastal zone where small-scale fishermen fish is likely to be even greater. It is therefore unlikely that the new policy will better protect coastal marine eco-systems and the fishing communities that depend on them.
Will trawlers involved in illegal activities in West Africa be granted licences to fish for shrimp?
On 20 May 2021, the Seychelles Government announced that eight Chinese trawlers were detained in Port Victoria: LU QING XIN YUANG 005, LU QING XIN YUANG 006, LU QING XIN YUANG 007, LU QING XIN YUANG 008, GORDE 105, GORDE 106, GORDE 107, GORDE 108. The captains of these trawlers stated that they had left Senegal on 6 April 2021 and were heading for the Malagasy EEZ.
There were numerous irregularities in the registration and certification of the vessels, including the four GORDE vessels that used MMSI numbers belonging to another Chinese fleet currently fishing off the west coast of Latin America.
On 25 May, the 8 vessels were allowed to leave Victoria harbour by the Seychelles authorities, at the request of the Malagasy authorities who confirmed that the vessels had permission to come into their country’s EEZ.
In May, the Seychelles detained 8 Chinese trawlers heading to Malagasy waters as there were irregularities in their registration and certification. They were allowed to leave after Madagascar confirmed they were authorized to come into its EEZ. Archive photo from Port Victoria harbour. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
These eight boats arrived in Toamasina, on the east coast of Madagascar, on 11 June. They will fish in the area south of Mahajunga for the company MADAFISHERY. This company, registered in Antsiranana, was awarded twelve shrimp licenses under the reformed policy, even though it did not own any boats, leading some to suspect that there was corruption in the allocation of fishing rights. Twelve fishing licences is three times the number of licences received by each of the other Malagasy shrimp trawlers fleets, which received only four licences per fleet! According to local sources, MADAFISHERY intends to set up its operations in Antsiranana (ex-Diego Suarez), the country's tuna fishing port. Many wonder what shrimp trawlers would do in Antsiranana, which is not a traditional port for trawlers, as it is far from the shrimp fishing grounds. There is also no factory on site that can process shrimp. The fear is that MADAFISHERY is in Antsiranana to hide its activities from other shrimp operators.
This situation is all the more worrying as some of these Chinese trawlers were arrested in The Gambia in November 2020: the GORDE 105, GORDE 106 and GORDE 107 were trawling in the area reserved for Gambian artisanal fishing. According to Sea Shepherd, two of the trawlers, GORDE 105 and GORDE 107, were also double bagging their nets, i.e. fishing with one net inside another, in order to circumvent mesh size requirements, which is another violation of Gambian fishing regulations. Three days later, the fishing vessel Xing Xi Wang 1, then operating under the Gambian flag, was arrested for fishing with illegal mesh size.
The fact that these "delinquent boats" are now in Malagasy waters is a threat to sustainable fisheries, and to the activities of small-scale fishers.
Transparency in Malagasy fisheries, more than ever an essential basis for an SFPA
At a time when a new protocol of the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement is being negotiated between the European Union and Madagascar, and even if the access discussed in the agreement is limited to tuna resources, it is imperative that the partners address the issues of the necessary protection of Madagascar's small-scale fishing activities, which are essential both for the food security of the population and for the resilience of coastal communities.
In view of the latest developments in industrial fisheries, whether in shrimp fishing, mangrove crab fishing, or agreements with companies such as Côte d'Or, transparency in the management of marine fisheries and in the use of sectoral support funds is an essential aspect in the quest for sustainable fisheries.
The consideration of the needs of small-scale fisheries within the framework of the sectoral support of the possible future agreement can be improved by taking inspiration from the actions proposed in the inclusive and participatory national action plan for artisanal fisheries in Madagascar which is being prepared.
Banner photo: By jordieasy/Getty Images via Canva Pro.
SWIOTUNA and FPAOI organised a parallel event to the 27th session of the IOTC which was held in Mauritius early May. They shed light on the challenges small-scale tuna fishers face in the region and issued a joint statement.