The European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) participated in the second joint operation to monitor fishing activities in West Africa in 2019, according to a statement issued on Wednesday 29 May by the agency based in Vigo, Spain.
This monitoring operation was organised by the FAO Sub-Regional Fisheries Commission (SRFC), as part of the EU-funded programme for improving the governance of regional fisheries in West Africa (PESCAO programme).
The operation known as ‘KUTA’, in which EFCA participated, consisted of aeronautical and maritime surveillance coordinated by the SRFC and in which the Member States concerned cooperated to detect illegal fishing activities.
An expert from the agency remained on board the Sierra Leone patrol boat.
The Vigo agency supported the ‘KUTA’ operation with imagery from the integrated maritime services and the Copernicus programme.
Surveillance activities were carried out in the exclusive economic zones of Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone using three patrol vessels from the countries concerned and one patrol vessel from Cape Verde. The naval forces involved in the operation inspected 55 fishing vessels and detected six alleged violations. Thanks to the aerial surveillance of the French Navy, 52 fishing vessels were spotted, including one apparently unauthorised trawler. The coordination centre discovered suspected activities of refrigerated vessels. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)