Cape Town, May 4, (dpa/GNA) – Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing of certain areas of the south-western Indian Ocean is resulting in losses amounting to over $142 million every year, the environmental organization World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said in a new report.
The African countries of Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Africa and Tanzania in particular have suffered massive economic losses from IUU catches of shrimp and tuna, the WWF said in the report released on Thursday.
“As much as $142.8 million of potential income was lost from the region every year as a result of combined potential IUU fishing activities linked to these two species,” the WWF said.
Between 2015 and 2021, nearly half (48.7%) of tuna and over a quarter (26.4%) of shrimp fishing activities in the region were potentially illegal or unregulated.
The Indian Ocean is the second largest tuna fishing area in the world after the Western Pacific, according to the environmental organization.
Since European Union member states are some of the region’s primary trade partners for tuna and shrimp, the bloc should insist on sustainable fishing practices and transparent supply chains for products destined for European markets, the authors said.
“EU nations are some of the key market states for seafood products exported from this region, meaning the EU has a duty of care to ensure that what it imports is not linked with illegal fishing,” said Antonia Leroy, head of Ocean Policy at the WWF European Policy Office.
“This is especially true for shrimp, where traceability regulations are almost nonexistent, as well as for the practices of the EU’s own tuna fleets, which must be effectively monitored to uphold the sustainable fisheries values they preach at home. Illicit fishing activities cannot continue to deprive the region of economic opportunities and jeopardise thousands of livelihoods.”
Overfishing not only puts pressure on fish and seafood populations; illegal fishing also endangers the future of the industry and the ocean’s food chains.
“All nations must come together to put an end to IUU fishing and ensure transparency and traceability across the seafood supply chains entering European markets,” said Umair Shahid, WWF’s Indian Ocean tuna manager.
GNA