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The European Union and Cape Verde renewed their fisheries partnership agreement today, allowing 56 fishing vessels from Portugal, Spain, and France to access Cape Verdean waters until 2029, it was announced today.
In a statement, the European Commission indicates that the European Union (EU) formalized this agreement today, which “allows EU vessels to access Cape Verdean waters for a period of five years, while simultaneously preserving the development of the fisheries sector in Cape Verde.”
“The protocol will also strengthen fisheries governance, marine environment protection, and support the creation of jobs and activities in the fisheries sector,” argues Brussels.
It is foreseen that 56 fishing vessels from EU Member States will access Cape Verde’s waters until 2029, with the European fleet comprised of 24 purse seiners, 10 pole-and-line vessels, and 22 surface longliners operating in Spain, France, or Portugal and fishing for tuna and associated species.
The agreed annual reference is 7,000 tons of catches, “which reflects the trend of catches made in recent years by Union vessels in the Cape Verdean fishing zone,” the institution specifies.
The EU’s contribution to this new protocol is estimated at 3.9 million euros over a five-year period, or 780,000 euros per year, of which 430,000 euros will be allocated to promoting Cape Verde’s sustainable fisheries management, control, and surveillance capabilities and supporting local fishing communities.
In addition to the EU’s contribution, shipowners will pay fees to Cape Verde’s administration to be authorized to fish.
This new protocol will be provisionally applied from today and will fully enter into force once the ratification process by both parties is completed, which for the EU involves approval by the European Parliament.
The provisional application allows the Union’s vessels to resume fishing activities in Cape Verdean waters, after a short period of interruption, from May 19, 2024, the date on which the previous protocol expired.
The fisheries partnership agreement between the EU and Cape Verde came into force on March 20, 2007, and is tacitly renewed, with the last application protocol renewed on May 20, 2019, for the period until 2024.
The new application protocol of the agreement covers tuna fishing and associated species within the framework of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.
In the note published today on its website, the institution also emphasizes that this renewal “responds to Cape Verde’s desire to strengthen the industrialization and competitiveness of the sector, considering the strategic potential of the Cape Verdean fishing zone in the tuna sector in the Atlantic Ocean.”
“For Cape Verde, the protocol should create added value and jobs, favoring transshipments and landings of catches at the port of Mindelo, in São Vicente, as well as the boarding of local fishermen and observers on European vessels,” it adds.