The European Commission adopted a proposal on Wednesday 15 March seeking to amend the fishing agreement between the EU and Mauritania in light of the new fishing opportunities agreed.
Six new EU vessels will be authorised to fish in Mauritanian waters under the terms of the new agreed arrangements (see EUROPE 11671).
Regulation 2017/2192 allocates the fishing opportunities set out in the 2015-2019 protocol to the EU-Mauritania fisheries partnership agreement among the member states. At its meeting in Nouakchott on 15 and 16 November 2016, the Joint Committee decided to grant new fishing opportunities to EU freezer trawlers targeting black hake as the main targeted species (3,500 tonnes) and, in addition, (1,450 tonnes) and cuttlefish (600 tonnes) as secondary targeted species, within the limits of the available surplus.
The objective of the proposal is to allocate these new fishing opportunities to the member states. The annual financial contribution for the new fishing category has been set at €2,500,000 per year. The annual financial contribution paid by the EU to Mauritania is, therefore, increased from €55,000,000 to €57,500,000. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)