- Title: MAURITANIA: Local fishermen fear losing out from China fishing deal
- Date: 24th June 2011
- Summary: NOUADHIBOU, DAKHLET NOUADHIBOU, MAURITANIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF NOUADHIBOU AUTONOMOUS PORT ENTRANCE VARIOUS OF PORT DOCK VARIOUS OF TRAWLER AT SEA / SEAMAN ON TRAWLER VARIOUS OF CHINESE MEN WORKING AT PORT (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHEKHANY OULD AMAR, VICE PRESIDENT OF NATIONAL FISHING FEDERATION SAYING: "The presence of this Chinese fleet is a threat for the Mauritanian fleet. First because of the pressure on the resources, second because of unfair competition and third because of the benefits this company is giving them and which make them dominate the fishing industry, including foreign investors and the Chinese companies who have been operating in Mauritania for three decades." VARIOUS OF SHIP ARRIVING AND DOCKING AT PORT/ FISHERMEN OFFLOADING GEAR (SOUNDBITE) (French) HANINE, FISH BROKER, SAYING: "Mauritanian business people who invested here, built plants, will face very tough competition. They employ only Mauritanians, these are Mauritanians investments, they will face a lot of competition. Besides, they already have problems to find fish and when the Chinese will come there will almost be no fish left for them, so these local investors are bound to go bankrupt." VARIOUS OF PIROGUES LEAVING THE PORT FOR FISHING VARIOUS OF TRAWLERS AT ANCHORAGE MAURITANIA, NOUAKCHOTT (RECENT) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (French) MOHAMED OULD HAFEDH OULD EJIWEN, DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS AND COOPERATION AT THE MINISTRY OF FISHING, SAYING: "The advantages of this agreement, reside first in promoting pelagic species, creating jobs, setting up a pilot project for investors in Mauritania, and second in ensuring the visibility of investment in pelagic species in Mauritania." NOUADHIBOU, DAKHLET NOUADHIBOU, MAURITANIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF FISH BEING OFFLOADED FROM TRAWLER BY A SPANISH CREW VARIOUS OF LOCAL WORKERS ARRANGING FISH LOADS MAURITANIA, NOUAKCHOTT (RECENT) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (French) MOHAMED OULD HAFEDH OULD EJIWEN, DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS AND COOPERATION AT THE MINISTRY OF FISHING, SAYING: "It is a deal with the Chinese on 80,000 to 100,000 tonnes of fish which will be unloaded in Mauritania, promoted and exported as Mauritanian products. The boats will fly the Mauritanian flag, so it's a national company. We call on European investors, if they wish to invest in Mauritania, if they dont get more benefits, they will get at least the same benefits as the company that has just established itself in Mauritania." NOUADHIBOU, DAKHLET NOUADHIBOU, MAURITANIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF POLY HON DONE COMPOUND ENTRANCE VARIOUS VIEWS OF POLY HON DONE COMPOUND FROM BAY
- Embargoed: 9th July 2011 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Mauritania, Mauritania
- Country: Mauritania
- Topics: Industry
- Reuters ID: LVAEJX12QDXTMLTSQ2HJUPSFLKMK
- Story Text: Mauritania says a deal to let Chinese trawlers fish off its coast for the next quarter of a century will bring jobs; locals fret it will merely take food out of mouths in this poor West African nation.
Mauritanian opposition lawmakers, green activists and panicked local fishermen say there is a worrying lack of transparency and safeguards in a 25-year offshore fishing licence granted to Chinese firm Poly Hon Done Pelagic Fishery.
The Mauritanian government says the contract signed on June 7 will create 2,000 jobs for fishermen in the vast Saharan nation, but critics say that hardly matches the loss of 40,000 livelihoods from fishermen whose boats can't compete with the trawlers they fear will empty the seas.
"The presence of this Chinese fleet is a threat for the Mauritanian fleet. First because of the pressure on the resources, second because of unfair competition and third because of the benefits this company is giving them and which make them dominate the fishing industry, including foreign investors and the Chinese companies who have been operating in Mauritania for three decades," said Cheikhany Ould Amar, vice president of the National Federation of Fisheries, in Nouadhibou, Mauritania's main commercial city.
Local fishermen say their vessels will be obsolete as the state has not helped replace them, while the Chinese come in with new boats.
The fierce passions the deal has aroused are echoed elsewhere on the continent, where populous, resource-hungry China is massively investing in a drive to find raw materials to feed its economy and markets for its manufactured goods.
Africans are increasingly worried about losing access to natural resources like forests and fisheries.
"Mauritanian business people who invested here, built plants, will face very tough competition. They employ only Mauritanians, these are Mauritanians investments, they will face a lot of competition. Besides, they already have problems to find fish and when the Chinese will come there will almost be no fish left for them, so these local investors are bound to go bankrupt," said Hanine, a fish broker.
Scientists say the world's fishing industry is fast running out of new ocean fishing grounds to exploit, as existing areas are depleted and fish stocks in some places collapse.
West Africa is suffering particularly badly from the effects of trawlers, which are depleting the catches of local fishermen and depriving poor people of a vital source of protein.
Mauritania, a mostly un-arable desert nation, has some of West Africa's richest fishing waters, but stocks are falling.
Fishing accounts for about 10 percent of its gross domestic product and up to 50 percent of its export earnings and many small scale fisherman depend on the fish too.
Proponents of the Hon Done deal point to a 100 million US dollar investment promised to build a processing factory, a manufacturing site for traditional fishing boats, and a training centre that the deal will bring skills to Mauritania.
Officials also hope the deal will show the wealth of pelagic or open ocean species in Mauritania.
"The advantages of this agreement, reside first in promoting pelagic species, creating jobs, setting up a pilot project for investors in Mauritania, and second in ensuring the visibility of investment in pelagic species in Mauritania," said Mohamed El Hafedh Ould Ejiwen, a program director in the Department of Fisheries.
Officials also point out that the European Union already pays Nouakchott about 100 million US dollars annually for fishing rights and that there is room for even further investment.
"It is a deal with the Chinese on 80,000 to 100,000 tonnes of fish which will be unloaded in Mauritania, promoted and exported as Mauritanian products. The boats will fly the Mauritanian flag, so it's a national company. We call on European investors, if they wish to invest in Mauritania, if they dont get more benefits, they will get at least the same benefits as the company that has just established itself in Mauritania," said Ould Ejiwen.
Environmental activists remain unconvinced saying that opening Mauritanian waters to Chinese fleets will only further endanger the fish stocks upon which local communities depend for their survival and are calling for the deal's cancellation. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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