Brussels delays trade sanctions against Ghana, Philippines, PNG

The European Commission has granted six-month extensions to the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Ghana as the nations work toward eradicating illegal fishing in their countries. Each country was issued official warnings for failing to do enough to address their fisheries-control weaknesses last year and were subsequently given a six-month period, coupled with an action plan, to make the necessary changes.

The initial shortcomings identified by the commission included weak legislation, lacking a system of sanctions to deter illegal fishing activities or deficiencies in systems for the monitoring, controlling and surveillance of fisheries.

However, it has been determined that the three had made credible progress in fulfilling these obligations and therefore warranted an additional six months to establish their full compliance with international rules.

“I am pleased that the Philippines and Papua New Guinea have taken their warnings seriously, and that Ghana continues to cooperate closely with the commission. All three countries have shown political will and have made tangible progress in fighting illegal fishing. That is why I am offering each country an additional six months and I look forward to seeing their hard work bear fruit later this year,” said Karmenu Vella, European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

Had the countries not made significant and demonstrable improvements within the initial six months, the EU could have taken further steps including trade sanctions on fisheries imports, such as those taken against Guinea, Belize, Cambodia and Sri Lanka.

The decision is based on the EU’s illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing regulation, which entered into force in 2010 and only allows access to the EU market for fisheries products that have been certified as legal by the relevant flag state.

In March last year, upon the commission’s proposal, the Council of Ministers adopted trade measures against Belize, Cambodia and Guinea for their lack of commitment to tackling illegal fishing.

The council last month adopted similar measures against Sri Lanka, a major exporter of tuna and swordfish products to the EU market.

The decision against Belize was revoked in December 2014 following a significant improvement in fisheries governance by the country.

According to the commission, the estimated global value of IUU fishing is EUR 10 billion (USD 11.4 billion) per year and that between 11 million and 26 million metric tons of fish are caught illegally each year, which corresponds to at least 15 percent of the total global catch.

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