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Illegal fishing : Strengthening of flag state obligations for vessels

PĂȘcheurs Afrique de l'Ouest
PĂȘcheurs Afrique de l’Ouest

The international tribunal for the Law of the Sea decided that countries can be held liable for not taking necessary measures to prevent illegal, unreported or unregulated fishing operations by their vessels in the waters of foreign countries.

The countries have a duty of due diligence to ensure that their fishing vessels do not engage in illegal fishing in foreign waters

The flag State has the obligation to take necessary measures, including those of enforcement, to ensure compliance by vessels flying its flag with the laws and regulations enacted by the SRFC Member States concerning marine living resources within their exclusive economic zones for purposes of conservation and management of these resources.

The ruling is included in an Advisory Opinion issued by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) on the application of the West African Sub Regional Fisheries Commission (SRFC) – comprised of Cape Verde, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal and Sierra Leone.

Illegal fishing represent almost 37% of catch volumes in the West Africa region

Illegal fishing in coastal waters represents 10 to $ 20 million each year. It weakens the management of fisheries and deprives coastal communities of their source of food and employment. It would represent almost 37% of catch volumes in the West African region, which is the most affected in the world.

The Tribunal also strengthened the obligations of neighbouring coastal states to each other, stating that ‘The conservation and development of shared stocks in the exclusive economic zone of an SRFC Member State require from that State effective measures aimed at preventing over-exploitation of such stocks that could undermine their sustainable exploitation and the interests of neighbouring Member States.’