December 2017 — Sally Frankcom (Communications Officer) attended the tenth Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) Conference of Ministers, held in Abuja, Nigeria on 15th December 2017. The meeting brought together Ministers and officials from the six FCWC Member States as well as representatives form regional, international and non-governmental organisations.
Opening the meeting His Excellency Professor Yemi Osinbajo the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria congratulated the FCWC on their tenth anniversary and highlighted the important role it plays in strengthening sub-regional cooperation in fisheries management, monitoring, surveillance and enforcement operations; and the development of the capacity of small-scale fishing operators in member countries, to create sustainable livelihoods.
Ministers approved a protocol on the pooling and sharing of information in the FCWC area that will enable agencies to secure information sharing between all partners and strengthen the capacity to end illegal fishing.
A strategy to tackle transhipment was also agreed by Ministers. Developed in response to the growing recognition of at sea transhipment as a major challenge for sustainable management of fisheries, and as a key facilitator of illegal fishing and a means for illegally caught fish to enter the supply chain.
