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Somalia accedes to the Port State Measures Agreement

Close on the heels of Mauritius, Somalia is now the fifth African country to ratify, accept, approve or accede to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA). The development is a welcome demonstration of Somalia’s commitment to prevent illegal fishing and the trade of illegal fish products.

Somalia has the largest coastline in continental Africa (3‚ 300 km) as well as one of the richest fishing grounds in the world. Success in tackiling piracy off the Horn of Africa has meant the return of‚ illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing as illegal operators feel safe to return to Somali waters. A recent report by the group Secure Fisheries, Securing Somali Fisheries provides data indicating that foreign IUU fishing vessels are now catching three times more fish than Somalis.

To tackle the IUU fishing Somalia has introduced a raft of measures to strengthen fisheries management and governance; claiming Somalia’s 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ), in line with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; outlawing bottom trawling; and, joining the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). Acceding to the PSMA is the latest action of a country determined to end illegal fishing.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has prioritised the issue “fishing in Somali waters must not be allowed to remain a free-for-all, where far-flung foreign fleets exploit the ecosystem in unsustainable ways. I call upon the international community to collaborate with my government to ensure that IUU fishing in Somali waters is stopped for good.”

To date five African countries have become Party to the PSMA: Seychelles, Gabon, Mozambique, Mauritius and Somalia (in order of deposit of instruments). The PSMA is seen as a vital and low-cost tool in the fight against IUU.