{"id":30511,"date":"2025-03-26T14:28:43","date_gmt":"2025-03-26T18:28:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/coastwatch\/?p=30511"},"modified":"2025-07-16T14:41:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T18:41:14","slug":"spring-2025-across-the-atlantic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/coastwatch\/spring-2025-across-the-atlantic\/","title":{"rendered":"Across the Atlantic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n
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Can Ghana reverse its declining marine resources?<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n

\n \n
\n \n FROM THE SPRING 2025 ISSUE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n \n\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Ed.note: \u201cAcross the Atlantic\u201d is a new series that offers short glimpses at stories and issues along the Atlantic\u2019s eastern coasts.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The road to achieving the United Nations\u2019 sustainable development goal for \u201czero hunger\u201d seems murky due to the rise of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IUU fishing is a significant global issue, ranking as the sixth-largest crime, according to Transnational Crime and the Developing World<\/a>, a report from Global Financial Integrity. In fact, IUU accounts for up to 20% of fish caught at sea and is worth up to an estimated $23.5 billion annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, a 2022 Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions study<\/a> by Elizabeth Selig and her colleagues revealed the global risks of labor abuse and IUU fishing. It also indicated that Argentina, Peru, Chile, and Western Africa were high-risk zones of \u201ctransshipment\u201d \u2014 the unloading of goods from one ship onto another on route to a final destination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Yellow Card from the European Commission<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Ghana, a developing country in West Africa, received a \u201cyellow card\u201d from the European Commission in 2013 due to concerns over illegal fishing but had it lifted in 2015 after adopting new legislation and a fisheries management plan. However, poor implementation of the legislation and the plan\u2019s policies prompted the European Commission to re-issue the warning in 2021<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cyellow card\u201d is an official warning from the European Commission to trading partners who fail to tackle IUU fishing. If noncompliance or non-collaboration continues, a \u201cred card\u201d follows, resulting in a seafood exports ban to the European Union, among other sanctions. This system aims to promote stronger fisheries governance and deter illegal practices globally by making compliance with sustainable fishing standards a prerequisite for trade with the EU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Locals fishing legally at Senya Beraku, Ghana. Credit: Dietmar Temps.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ghana\u2019s newly appointed Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development<\/a>, Emelia Arthur, now has the opportunity to enforce sustainable fisheries management. Strengthening these measures would not only secure the EU\u2019s removal of the yellow card but also prevent future sanctions and ensure the long-term sustainability of Ghana\u2019s fisheries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tracking Rogue Operators<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

 Fish is the third most consumed animal protein in Ghana, following chicken and beef. In 2020 and 2021, per capita fish consumption stood at 44.5 pounds and 54.2 pounds per person per year, respectively<\/a>. Significantly, this exceeds the Food and Agriculture Organization\u2019s estimate of 19 to 22 pounds in sub-Saharan Africa, demonstrating the importance of fish for food and nutrition security in Ghana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, IUU activities have continued to plague the fishing sector. A recent report by the Environmental Justice Foundation revealed that Ghana loses between $14.4 million and $23.7 million annually in licensing fees and fines from trawlers due to illegal fishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Non-Ghanaian companies partially or fully own about 90% of industrial fishing vessels.<\/a> These operators exploit legal loopholes by registering their vessels under local \u201cfront\u201d or shell companies to disguise their ownership, allowing them to evade fines and circumvent regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is why we are working to map and monitor every large fishing vessel in the world,\u201d says Fred Kwasi Antwi-Boadu, executive director of Ghana\u2019s Fisheries Commission. \u201cWe use this data to enable authorities and the wider ocean community to identify rogue operators and take action.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new measures, he adds, have increased compliance to 70% by trawlers and about 90% for artisanal boats. \u201cThe number of trawlers\u2019 fleets have reduced to 45 \u2014 from 106.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
The local Elmina fishing fleet in Ghana.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Antwi-Boadu says that the final hurdle for the European Commission to lift the yellow card is the amendment of Ghana\u2019s Fisheries Act. The Act provides for the regulation and management of fisheries, the development of the fishing industry, and sustainable use of fishery resources, among other provisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, an amendment of the act will in effect empower the Minister to make regulations to combat IUU fishing in accordance with international obligations and standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rise of Aquaculture<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

According to a UN report, the far-reaching impacts of IUU fishing extend beyond environmental concerns and disrupt economic development, food security, and ocean ecosystems. By bypassing regulations, IUU fishing harms legitimate fishers and the coastal communities that depend on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, aquaculture (fish farming) has gained significant popularity in Ghana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAquaculture is now the alternative to fill the gap created by illegal fishing,\u201d says Jacob Adzikah, chief executive officer of the Chamber of Aquaculture Ghana. \u201cIllegal fishing has led to an increased demand for aquaculture products, because Ghanaians are ardent fish eaters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adzikah says that the Chamber also has embarked on collaborative advocacy events with the Fisheries Commission to \u201chighlight the negative impacts of IUU and to end it as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, Adzikah notes that a new effort aims to diversify Ghana\u2019s aquaculture sector, including mariculture (shellfish farming), and to prevent overcrowding on the Volta Lake, the nation\u2019s primary fish farming hub.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA pilot study is ongoing at Kasoa<\/a> and at Ada<\/a>,\u201d he says. \u201cHopefully, if this study is successful, Ghana will see an expansion of mariculture farms in the near future.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emma Davies<\/strong> is an award-winning journalist and a contributing editor for Coastwatch<\/em>. She is pursuing a masters of arts in liberal studies at North Carolina State University, with a concentration in communication and genetic engineering. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

lead photo: AdobeStock<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FROM THE SPRING 2025 ISSUE<\/a><\/strong>
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ed.note: \u201cAcross the Atlantic\u201d is a new series that offers short glimpses at stories and issues along the Atlantic\u2019s eastern coasts. 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