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West Africa Task Force meets at the 8th Ministerial Conference of the FCWC

The 8th Ministers Conference of the Fisheries Committee for West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) was held in Accra, Ghana in December 2015.

Addressing the meeting the Honourable Sherry Ayittey, Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Ghana stressed “it is imperative that we all work in unison to protect the fishery sector for eternity. Combatting illegal fishing will require improved MCS as well as the enactment and enforcement of fisheries laws and regulations.”

The six members of the West Africa Task Force Benin, C´te D’Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Togo adopted a Terms of Reference which establishes a framework for the Task Force including goals, membership and support.

Mr. Seraphin Dedi, Secretary General of the FCWC congratulated the Task Force on the speed with which new cooperative working methods are being adopted both at national and regional levels. “All countries are now actively participating on the WATF communications platform. This is bringing immediate benefits to the regions MCS efforts as information is exchanged and acted upon in real time.”

Dr Sizi Subah, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Liberia also commended the work of the West Africa Task Force saying “in Liberia our surveillance systems are still poor so the WATF is vital in facilitating the exchange of information in our region.”