In November, Secure Fisheries chaired two workshops in Seychelles and Somalia focused on strengthening the coordination of maritime agencies to fight illegal fishing. The first workshop, held November 14, was co-hosted by the Regional Maritime Centre for Operational Coordination at its headquarters in Victoria, Seychelles, and brought together representatives from the Seychelles Fishing Authority, Seychelles Coast Guard, Customs, and Maritime Police. The meeting resulted in recommendations for the sharing of interagency information on suspect illegal fishing vessels. The workshop in Somalia, co-hosted by the European Union Capacity Building Mission (EUCAP) in Somalia on November 18, was attended by the federal minister for Fisheries, H.E. Abdilahi Bidham Warsame, and the federal minister for Ports and Maritime Transportation, H.E. Marian Aweys, along with senior staff from the Ministry of Fisheries, Maritime Police, the Ministry of Ports, and the Attorney General’s Office. The workshop produced several recommendations, including the creation of an interagency task force to address illegal fishing in Somali waters. The workshop was well received by the Somali government: “We as the Government are grateful for Secure Fisheries and EUCAP for hosting this vital workshop which is first of its kind by bringing relevant stakeholders together to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in Somalia’s Exclusive Economic Zone.” Read the press release from EUCAP here.
