Sierra Leone After Korean IUU Vesselsff

Source: Patriotic Guard

Sierra Leone Minister Soccoh Kabia, from the Ministry of Marine Resources and Fisheries, recently spoke to Patriotic Vanguard news source explaining the current situation of IUU vessels in Sierra Leone and the measures the country is taking to “protect its marine resources so that these can continue to be a source of livelihood, food security and revenue for the government”.

Dr. Kabia indicated that the Government is presently pursuing four vessels for IUU activity—the Marcia 777, Kum Myeong 702, the Five Star and the Ocean 3 for subsequent offences after their initial fines. They are flagged to South Korea and fled Sierra Leone after being documented operating illegally by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF). Their flag state, South Korea, and their likely destination, Guinea, have both been contacted to make an arrest and return the vessels to Sierra Leone. Besides these enforcement measures, tightening the rules governing the use of Vessel Monitoring Systems by licensed vessels and reforming its fisheries observer program are in the works.

The Executive Director of Environmental Justice Foundation, Steve Trent, said: “This is a potentially transformative moment in fisheries enforcement in West Africa. We congratulate Sierra Leone on the series of arrests it has made and the subsequent reduction in IUU fishing in the country’s waters. We are also proud of the contribution that EJF’s local staff and a new surveillance vessel have made on the crackdown. This is just the first step, however. Vessels that have been caught in Sierra Leone are moving to neighboring countries to carry on their illegal activities. We need a regional response to this threat, with increased transparency across the global seafood market so that retailers and consumers can avoid pirate fish.”

Minister Kabia assured that Sierra Leone is working to ensure that every fishing vessel within the country’s waters operates in compliance with its laws. He said, “It is crucial that we protect our valuable marine resources that provide a source of livelihood, food security and government revenue. So grateful to the French government for their cooperation in carrying out the responsible duties of a flag state as we are reaching out to partners in the region and beyond to coordinate our efforts to arrest IUU fishing. We are sending a clear message to poachers and would-be poachers that illegal fishing is no longer tolerated in the maritime waters of Sierra Leone,” Dr. Kabia concluded.