The European Union and Ivory Coast have a new tuna fishing agreement that allows the EU fleet – composed of Spanish and French vessels – to fish in the African country’s waters within the Atlantic Ocean. Ivory Coast is the major tuna processing center in Africa.
According to the deal, the EU fleet will pay the Ivory Coast EUR 680,000 (about USD 908,000) annually in return for a total catch allowance of 6,500 tons each year. The Ivory Coast is required to put EUR 257,500 of the EU payment towards its fisheries policy. In the end the EU pays roughly USD 139 for right to catch a ton of tuna, which currently has a market value of about USD 1,900 in the case of skipjack.
The cost of the fishing rights works out to EUR 3,350 (USD 4,470) per fishing day, less than what a day costs catch in the Pacific waters of the PNA countries, which is minimum USD 5,000. This calculation is based on the assumption that purse seiners catch an average of 32 tons each day.
This agreement will be valid for five years and replaces the current one, which expires at the end of June. The EU says the partnership is important to reinforce cooperation between the two parties and will help combat illegal fishing. It says management of fishing activities will be improved with the use of vessel monitoring systems and electronic logbooks.