The implementation of a new protocol for the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement (SFPA) between the EU and the Seychelles has been welcomed by French tuna operators’ federation Orthongel.
The agreement has been signed by Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans Costas Kadis and Wallace Cosgrow, Minister for Fisheries, Agriculture and the Blue Economy of the Seychelles.
The previous agreement had expired on 23rd February, leaving European vessels operating in the Indian Ocean in a state of prolonged uncertainty. This development brings an end to several months of uncertainty. It enables around thirty purse seiners, including those belonging to Orthongel members, to once again obtain a fishing licence in Seychelles waters, valid for four years and subject to a limit of 55,000 tonnes of tuna and associated species per year.
The protocol provides for a financial contribution from the EU of €23 million over four years, of which 3 million is earmarked for supporting the Seychelles’ fisheries sector (small-scale fisheries, scientific cooperation, combating IUU fishing). Fishing vessels, for their part, pay a licence and catch fee of €90 per tonne, as well as a contribution towards the environmental management of Seychelles’ waters.
An Orthongel representative commented that this protocol guarantees operational stability in a strategic fishing zone in the Indian Ocean.
‘This helps to secure supplies to the European market, given that tuna is the most widely consumed seafood on the continent.’
