Sierra Leone Ends Fishing ‘Flag Of Convenience'

Sierra Leone Ends Fishing ‘Flag Of Convenience'

Sierra Leone has said it would close its international shipping registry to foreign-owned fishing vessels, in a move intended to reduce illegal catches in its seas and around the world.

Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Joseph Koroma announced this on Thursday at a news conference.

The minister said the ban on foreign-owned shipping would only apply to fishing craft. Other commercial vessels would still be able to register in the country.

''When these vessels fly our flag they go to the open ocean and there's nothing we can do about it, we are saying enough is enough, the buck stops here.'' Koroma said.

Officials in Sierra Leone say two new fast patrol boats funded by the World Bank will help them enforce the new regulations in local waters.

However, the fisheries minister said dealing with illegal fishing under their flag further afield would remain beyond their capacity.

''For the illegal vessels on the high seas, I must confess for the moment we don't have the means,'' Koroma said.

First country to apply the rule

Officials said Sierra Leone , notorious as a so-called ‘flag of convenience' with minimum enforcement of maritime regulations, was the first such nation in the world to implement the measure.

Now between 40 and 50 foreign-owned fishing vessels are signed up with a registry in New Orleans that allows them to fly the country's green, white and blue flag.

Activists say these ships use the flag to disguise illegal activities and their identities, using banned fishing gear and operating inside an inshore fishing zone reserved for artisanal fishermen in Sierra Leone itself as well as much further afield.

Millions of loss in revenues

A survey by the Marine Resources Assessment Group estimated that "illegal, unreported and unregulated" (IUU) fishing costs Sierra Leone 29 million dollars per year, in terms of lost revenue and other expenses.

Koroma said between 2005 and 2009 ship owners paid a total of just 46,000 dollars for flag privileges.

Due to a revenue sharing agreement with the registry in the US , the government in Freetown received only about 10,000 dollars.

Higher than reported cases of illegal fishing

West Africa, close to the world's largest fish market in Europe , is a haven for so-called pirate fishing.

According to the Environmental Justice Foundation, the Eastern Central Atlantic has the highest level of IUU fishing in the world, 40 per cent higher than reported catches.

The value of this fish is put at up to 500 million dollars.

NAN/Yinka