The Nelson Mandela University in cooperation with Stop Illegal Fishing (SIF) conducted training for the government of Angola in the implementation of the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA).  The workshop was held in Luanda, Angola 13-17 February 2023.

The workshop was attended by 30 participants from the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine resources, the Angolan Navy, The Angolan Police, Customs and Immigration.  The 5-day workshop included a combination of theoretical sessions, practical exercises and a day in the port to follow a fisheries inspection.  The workshop focused on implementation of the wider system of port controls, which in addition to the PSMA includes the implementation of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Cape Town Agreement and The International Labour Organization (ILO) C188 – Work in Fishing Convention to promote fair, safe and legal fisheries.

FishFORCE conducts training of officials who are involved in the fight against IUU fishing and fisheries crime. The programme is a collaboration between the Nelson Mandela University based in Port Elisabeth,  South Africa and the Norwegian Government.

Per Erik Bergh from Stop Illegal Fishing said after the workshop: “The implementation of port State measures is an important MCS tool to reduce illegal fish entering SADC ports.  Having Angola supporting the implementation of the Agreement will strengthen both Angola’s and the SADC region’s ability to combat IUU fishing”.

JD Kotze from Stop Illegal Fishing complimented Angola for a well-developed fisheries MCS system and the already existing mechanisms for interagency cooperation.  He said that “it will be an honour to continue to work with Angola to further strengthen their MCS system through improved port State measures”.