Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – Greenpeace, an independent global campaigning organisation acting to protect and conserve the environment, urged African leaders to adopt emergency and concrete measures for greater transparency aimed at the elimination of illegal maritime fishing.
In a statement, Greenpeace said the lack of transparency was benefiting operators engaged in illegal and undeclared fishing, besides jeopardizing the world’s oceans.
According to the organisation, West Africa is among the regions suffering the consequences of illegal fishing.
Every year West-Africa loses about US$1.3 billion to illegal fishing, which also causes detrimental consequences on the environment and societies in countries of the region, Greenpeace said.
It called on African governments to make public data concerning vessels authorized to fish in their waters and those which committed offences, as well as the sanctions imposed on offenders.
At a time when the African Union is launching for the third time the “Decade of African Seas and Oceans”, Greenpeace said the region should put in place appropriate and efficient means to monitor and participate in the global effort to fight against the phenomenon, which seriously threatens the well-being of communities and the health of maritime ecosystems.
