Guinea (Conakry)

Fishing is a crucial economic and social activity in Guinea. Marine fishing provides 85,000 jobs and is primarily carried out by the artisanal sector. It contributes to food security and the survival of coastal communities, and specifically benefits women who process the fish. Catches are mainly of small pelagic species taken by artisanal fishermen to supply both the local fresh fish markets and fish smokers.

Fish constitutes an invaluable protein source for the local population. Despite possessing a wealth of marine resources, there are insufficient supplies to meet the needs of the Guinean population. In a recent report completed for the UK’s Department for International Development (DfID), it is estimated that the annual loss due to illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Guinean EEZ is around US$105 million, the worst in Africa. The report also estimated that Guinea loses in excess of 34,000 tonnes of fish every year to illegal fishing, including around 10,000 tonnes of ‘bycatch’ – the unwanted portion of the catch thrown overboard, usually dead or dying. With Guinea’s annual commercial catch estimated at 54,000 tonnes, the IUU catch represents a further 63% over and above these legal recorded catches.

EJF has been investigating the extent and impacts of illegal pirate fishing in Guinea since 2004, including partnerships with CFFA (Coalition for Fair Fisheries Agreements) and Greenpeace International. In 2006 an investigation of the coast of Guinea documented 104 foreign-flagged vessels operating in Guinean national waters. Over half of these were either directly engaged in or were linked to IUU fishing activities. Thirteen were fishing without a license; another 31 were involved in other IUU activities such as illegally transshipping (transferring their catches to freezer vessels at sea); and nine were observed fishing while deliberately hiding their names and identities.

Surveillance exercises in Guinean waters indicate that between 20% and 60% of fishing vessels are unlicensed. A major problem in Guinean waters, and indeed many African states, is illegal incursions by trawlers into the narrow coastal zone reserved exclusively for artisanal fishing. IUU fishing poses a serious threat to communities dependent on marine resources. Among the most common infractions are incursions by trawlers into the zone reserved for artisanal fishermen, which tend to occur at night, regularly causing fishermen to lose their fishing gear and canoes, and has even resulted in the loss of lives.

There is an absence of reliable catch data for Guinean waters, but catch rates for many species are reportedly decreasing, and in many cases, only juveniles are being caught. Matters are complicated by the fact that many boats, both licensed and unlicensed, use fishing gear or practices that are highly damaging to the marine environment and are therefore illegal. Common infractions in Guinean waters include the use of trawl nets with mesh smaller than the permitted size, destructive bottom trawling, and fishing within the 12-mile coastal zone demarked by the authorities exclusively for artisanal fishing, and which also contains vitally important spawning and nursery grounds for marine species.

As is the case in many developing states, fisheries monitoring and enforcement authorities lack the resources to properly defend Guinea's 320 km coastline from IUU fishing. Despite possessing the largest continental shelf area of Atlantic Africa (56,000 km2), Guinea relies on just five inshore patrol boats to protect its waters and several of these are inactive due to a severe lack of funds. The pirate industrial trawlers that intrude into Guinea’s coastal zone target shrimp, cephalopods and demersal fish. These fisheries have been estimated to be responsible for up to 50% of total global discards, whilst accounting for only 22% of total landings. In fact, tropical shrimp trawl fisheries are the most unselective and wasteful fisheries in the world, with the highest discard rate of any fishery, and bycatch-to-shrimp ratios averaging 10:1; in other words, 10kg of bycatch is caught to secure 1kg of shrimp. Furthermore, trawling removes vast numbers of juvenile fish needed to sustain fish stocks and, by dragging heavy nets along the seabed, habitats that support marine life are damaged. In heavily trawled areas, habitats have little chance to recover, and in some cases, may be permanently damaged.

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Most originate from China, Korea and the EU, but multiple name and flag changes are common, making identification of true beneficial owners very difficult. Some vessels even have dual identities - using one name or flag whilst fishing in Guinea and a totally different one when using port facilities and/or landing their catches. In aid of hiding their identities some vessels are known to make use of Flags of Convenience. Regardless of the ambiguity surrounding the identity of these vessels, however, there is undisputable evidence that the Spanish port of Las Palmas serves as a hub for their illegal operations: permitting them to land their catches, and providing them with essential services.

Marine resources in Guinea and the wider region are clearly in a perilous state. IUU fishing is responsible for further exacerbating the effects of decades of mismanagement and overexploitation by foreign and domestic fleets, and preventing the sustainable management of the fishery. Unless action is taken to control the rampant IUU fishing occurring in the coastal waters of Guinea and other West-African states, we will witness the collapse of one of the world’s most productive marine fisheries, and with it, catastrophic impacts on local populations. It is precisely for these reasons that IUU fishing is regarded by the international community as such a serious threat to the sustainability of world fisheries.

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