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Interview with Honourable Minister of Fisheries Cadmiel Mutemba, Mozambique
In 2008 the Southern African Ministers responsible for marine fisheries including the Honourable Mutemba firmly committed to stop illegal fishing by signing the SADC Statement of Commitment on IUU fishing and making strong supportive statements. Mozambique has become a regionally and internationally respected participant in the debate around IUU fishing and also an active participant in the Stop Illegal Fishing Programme. The Stop Illegal Fishing Programme are glad of the opportunity to profile Mozambique and the Honourable Minister. Minister, as you are aware in July 2008 the SADC Statement of Commitment on IUU fishing was signed in Windhoek, Namibia by Ministers responsible for fisheries in SADC coastal States. You personally showed a great commitment to ensure that this Statement didn’t just become another piece of paper but that it was turned into action and since then Mozambique has actively engaged with the SADC secretariat to make this happen:
Are you happy with the speed and content of the follow-up?
Personally, I consider the signing of the Statement of Commitment by SADC Fisheries Ministers as an important moment demonstrating our commitment at the regional level to eliminate this plague that affects the region, my country, the fishing communities, and the future generations. Therefore I am happy for having signed this Statement of Commitment and that we committed ourselves to take hard measures against illegal fishing. We directed our officials to draft the Action Plan for implementing the SADC Statement of Commitment, the first draft of this was developed by Mozambique and further, we hosted a technical meeting to finalize the above referred Plan, and this has now been completed. We have also built the steps to proceed with the Plan and now need to seek possible donors to support the implementation of these regional actions. Once all these steps are complete, we will then be in a position to appreciate the work done by the officials from Mozambique and our partner countries, one year after the signature. Therefore I am happy with the progress made to date and the actions that followed the signing of SADC Statement of Commitment. I am looking forward to discussing this progress with my Colleagues at the next SADC Ministerial Council meeting and endorsing the Action Plan so we can continue this momentum.
The Stop Illegal Fishing Programme are now working to assist other regions of Africa in developing similar Statements of Commitment, would you and your fellow SADC Ministers who signed the Statement be interested to also collaborate with Ministers across Africa to make a stronger Pan African commitment to fight illegal fishing?
This initiative would allow us to work through an African platform for cooperation based on a focused document for the Fisheries sector. There are other policies documents to guide our cooperation, especially at the regional level, but that African Statement of Commitment would provide us with a better understanding and commitment of Africa as a unique region. The major problem is not the instrument that outlines our spirit of cooperation, but the budget constraints to implement actions covered by that framework.
Closing ports to illegal vessels would be one way to massively reduce illegal fishing as vessels need to bring fish to shore at some point. The Port State Agreement (PSA) is currently being negotiated to try and achieve this and Mozambique has been an active participant in this process and a leader in the African Group:
Are you happy with progress in the PSA negotiations and do you feel that developing country concerns, particularly in relation to the capacity needed to implement the agreement have been adequately addressed?
Mozambique has being actively participating in many international fishery related negotiations and in the SADC region we have managed to create a platform of understanding including the positions of each country in order to prevent a fragmented regional approach. During the negotiations we were able to encourage other African countries of the benefits of working in this manner and we started acting as one block/group. That was really important progress as we had never acted as the one bloc in this manner before. During the last technical meeting we also worked with the Small Islands Group. Because of this coordination the Developing Countries concerns were considered as a key issue of the agreement and final understanding by all parties that assistance is really needed for developing countries in view to ratify and implement the Agreement.
Do you anticipate that Mozambique will sign and ratify the agreement once finalised and if yes, which port(s) would you expect to designate as the port to receive foreign vessels?
Firstly we will evaluate our own capacity for the implementation of the Agreement. After that we will finally ratify it, or if necessary, wait until those identified conditions are met to allow us not only to ratify it, but also have the means for implementation. There are Ports which already meet some conditions, but infra-structure and training for most of the African countries remains as the key issue.
In March 2009 a joint surveillance patrol took place on the South African vessel the Sarah Baartman between Mozambique, South Africa and Tanzania. This patrol was reported as highly successful and an example of the SADC Statement of Commitment on IUU fishing being implemented:
Were you happy with the outcome of the patrol and what did you see as the main benefits of this type of regional cooperation?
Mozambique always gives priority to bilateral and multilateral cooperation. I would like to say that multilateral patrol mission was preceded by a bilateral patrol between Mozambique and South Africa using Mozambican patrol vessel €“ KUSWAG I. Those patrol missions brought successful results either in Mozambique as in Tanzania.
Do you envisage more similar joint activities to fight IUU fishing?
Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing is a global problem. Therefore it requires a global response. Each country, each citizen has the responsibility in contributing a little bit in this battle. No country can fight against IUU fishing alone; joint efforts will always be necessary to address it.
The arrest of the Antillas Reefer has become a case of great international attention due to the ownership of the vessel as well as the ignorance shown by the owners and operators. Not a single case will have more influence on both industry and perception of the commitment of the Mozambican Governments to combat IUU fishing: € Can you explain how the on-going legal process in relation to the Antillas Reefer is progressing and if you are finding any difficulties in this type of ground breaking case?
The process took some time through the Administrative Tribunal (one year) because of the recourse appeal by the Captain, but, finally the Administrative Tribunal decided in our favour for its first section by confirming confiscation of the vessel and the fines. We are very happy with that decision.
It is well known that globally many legal systems have limited knowledge about the seriousness of environmental crime such as fisheries and consequently give too mild fines and penalties compared to the financial gain obtained through illegal activities €“ has this been a problem in this case, and do you feel that the legal systems in Mozambique and around SADC would benefit from a focus in environmental crime to be able to deal more adequately with such cases?
The approach of considering these as €environmental crimes€ is essential and necessary, mainly to allow us to quantify the losses coming from illegal fishing practices, but, such should be in accordance with the approach of and guided by the international legal and voluntary instruments which should guide the countries on this matter.
The Stop Illegal Fishing Programme prioritises awareness building and increasing knowledge of IUU fishing and how it operates as important aspects in the fight against illegal fishing:
Do you agree that awareness and knowledge are challenges in this fight and do you consider these important aspects to increase political support among African Governments in the campaign?
Africa is a victim of illegal fishing, but the major IUU fishing practitioners are not African and the planning of major actions to combat IUU fishing do not consider an African solution; these are external solutions. There is a need to provide the African continent with assets to enable the fight against IUU and sensitize the rest of the world on this problem for Africa and other developing countries.
The Ministry of Fisheries has recently implemented an extensive training programme related to MCS and IUU fishing for both technicians and managers within the Ministry. Is this a signal that you consider capacity building as a priority for your people at the sharp end €“ out in the ports and on fishing vessels as well as for those managing them?
Training for officers is fundamental for implementation of the legal and policy framework recently adopted for the Fisheries sector by the Mozambican Government. I am referring the MCS Policy and Strategy, National Plan of Action to Combat IUU Fishing, SADC Statement of Commitment to combat IUU, and the FAO Model Scheme for implementation of Port State Measures.
What do you consider the largest obstacle to fight IUU fishing within Africa?
There are several challenges faced by the countries. Mozambique in particular has got a long maritime coast, 2780 km of coastline. Its continental shelf allows landings at many points along the beach thus making it extremely difficult to monitor the fishing activity, a fact that facilitates the practice of IUU fishing. This problem can be solved with the existence of infrastructure for support of fishing to control access. On the other hand, the existence of a patrol vessel could help in combating IUU fishing. We have to have sufficient assets like patrol vessels, small aircraft and an operational VMS system. But, mostly we need trained personnel to implement the Port State Measures.