Empty nets, empty future in West Africa
By Hayley Baker
6 October 2011 We’ve been investigating overfishing in West African waters for a long time and our new report, Empty Nets, Empty Future shows, in a stark light, how the local fishing industry in West Africa is under threat. The report focuses on how millions of Senegalese people depend on the fish caught off shore for their basic protein needs, but because the West Africans’ waters are becoming increasingly overfished by European trawlers, many unique species are now threatened with extinction. With this comes a threat to the whole West African way of life. Overfishing These coastal fisheries have become a destination of choice for European and Asian fleets. Since their own fisheries have become too overfished (88% of the commercially used fish stocks in EU waters ae overfished), they have simply headed to Africa, where they fail to put any protective measures in place to save the diminishing fish stocks. Climate change The effect of climate change on the oceans is another important topic that the report broaches. Increased water temperatures and changing weather patterns, among other factors, reduce the ocean’s ability to sustain life. Empty Nets, Empty Future says that climate change could spell the end of the export fisheries industry in West Africa. This would destroy local economies, jobs and food availability. Many countries would not be able to adapt to this blow. The way forward But the report is careful to highlight solutions to this problem. It looks to the future, towards responsible fisheries management and a way to keep the plunder of the West African oceans in check. Oumy Sene Diouf, Greenpeace Africa’s oceans campaigner says, “African governments need to take responsibility for enabling sustainable incomes and livelihoods for their citizens. The governments also need to tackle overcapacity, the destruction of fisheries, ecosystem preservation, as well as control and surveillance.” Greenpeace is demanding fewer foreign trawlers and factory ships at sea, sustainable fishing practices and the establishment of a network of marine reserves to let fish stocks recover and protect the ecosystem. Current fisheries agreements should be scrapped and replaced with sustainable ones that benefit West African countries first and foremost. Add your voice to our call for to stop the plunder of African oceans. Read the full report here.
