The NGO Greenpeace Africa invites the Senegalese authorities to shed light on the suspicious presence of a Russian factory ship, which has been operating off the country since February 8, 2023. Industrial trawlers threaten the country’s fish resources, and the organization calls for more transparency on their presence in Senegalese waters.
With our correspondent in Dakar, Juliet Dubois
120m long, 2,000 tonnes of storage capacity… It’s a sea monster that has been stationed in Senegalese waters for ten days. According to the NGO Greenpeace, this boat, which flies the Russian flag, has nothing to do on the territory. ” Russia does not have a fishing agreement with Senegal explains Doctor Aliou Ba, head of the oceans campaign for Greenpeace. He pursues : ” Most fish resources are overexploited. I don’t see how this boat should be in our waters. Normally there could be no fishing license in Senegalese waters. »
In Senegal, 17% of the population lives from fishing. For fishermen and fish processors, the presence of this type of factory ship in the waters is a real danger for the environment and employment. ” They go to the high seas to scrape the bottom, which does not allow the fish to go down to the area where the soil is accessed. When these big boats come into our waters, they catch everything that is juvenile, all the fish that we eat and process. It’s really sad “says Anta Diouf, president of the women processors of Mbour.
Greenpeace demands more transparency from the government, with the publication of the list of vessels with fishing licenses, and better surveillance of the waters. Asked, the Ministry of Fisheries announces that it will speak during the week.
► Also to listen: Senegal: overfishing is devastating