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Threats of illegal,unregulated, and unreported fishing to biodiversity and food security in the Republic of the Congo |
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| Authors: | Philip D. Doherty Benoit C. Atsango Gaston Ngassiki Appolinaire Ngouembe Nathalie Bréheret Eva Chauvet Brendan J. Godley Lucie Machin Baudelaire Dissondet Moundzoho Richard J. Parnell Kristian Metcalfe |
| Affiliation: | 1. Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, UK;2. Direction Generale des Peches et de l'Aquaculture, Ministère de l'Agriculture, de l'Elevage et de la Pêche, Brazzaville, République du Congo;3. Association RENATURA Congo, Ecocentre, Rue Bois des Singes, Pointe Noire, République du Congo;4. Association RENATURA Congo, Ecocentre, Rue Bois des Singes, Pointe Noire, République du Congo Current address: Fédération Régionale des Centres d'Information sur les Droits des Femmes et des Familles (FR CIDFF PACA), 1, Rue de Forbin 13003 Marseille, France;5. Program Marin, Wildlife Conservation Society, Brazzaville, République du Congo;6. Wildlife Conservation Society, Libreville, Gabon |
| Abstract: | Illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing poses a major threat to effective management of marine resources, affecting biodiversity and communities dependent on these coastal resources. Spatiotemporal patterns of industrial fisheries in developing countries are often poorly understood, and global efforts to describe spatial patterns of fishing vessel activity are currently based on automatic identification system (AIS) data. However, AIS is often not a legal requirement on fishing vessels, likely resulting in underestimates of the scale and distribution of legal and illegal fishing activity, which could have significant ramifications for targeted enforcement efforts and the management of fisheries resources. To help address this knowledge gap, we analyzed 3 years of vessel monitoring system (VMS) data in partnership with the national fisheries department in the Republic of the Congo to describe the behavior of national and distant-water industrial fleets operating in these waters. We found that the spatial footprint of the industrial fisheries fleet encompassed over one-quarter of the Exclusive Economic Zone. On average, 73% of fishing activity took place on the continental shelf (waters shallower than 200 m). Our findings highlight that VMS is not acting as a deterrent or being effectively used as a proactive management tool. As much as 33% (13% on average) of fishing effort occurred in prohibited areas set aside to protect biodiversity, including artisanal fisheries resources, and the distant-water fleet responsible for as much as 84% of this illegal activity. Given the growth in industrial and distant-water fleets across the region, as well as low levels of management and enforcement, these findings highlight that there is an urgent need for the global community to help strengthen regional and national capacity to analyze national scale data sets if efforts to combat IUU fishing are to be effective. |
| Keywords: | Africa distant-water fleet governance illegal fishing industrial fisheries monitoring control and surveillance policy vessel monitoring system África flota de altura gestión monitoreo del control y la vigilancia pesca ilegal pesquería industrial política sistema de monitoreo de navíos |