THE Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA has said that the fishing sector is currently underfunded, a development that has given rise to illegal fishing activities on the nation’s coastal and territorial waters.
The agency in a statement signed by the Public Relations Officer, Chinweizu Amuta, said that the inherent nature of illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing makes it almost impossible to accurately quantify the full global economic impacts resulting from these illegal activities.
The agency said that IUU fishing activities violate both national and international fishing regulations with the issue being of global concern as it threatens ocean ecosystems and sustainable fisheries.
Amuta said like most countries in West Africa, Nigeria’s coastal waters contain diverse species of fish, which contribute to the food and economic security of its people, adding that small-scale fishing operations contribute 80 per cent of locally produced fish and support the livelihoods of 24 million Nigerians with around 73 per cent of those involved in fisheries in the country being women.
He stated: “The overall GDP contribution from fishing (small scale and industrial) was 0.84 per cent in 2019 and 1.09 per cent in 2020.
“Recently, the House of Representatives noted that the country loses $70 million each year to illegal fishing. This includes loss of licence fees, revenue from taxation and the value that could have been accrued from legitimate fishing by local vessels.
“Despite the important contribution that fishing makes to the livelihoods of Nigerians, the sector has suffered from underfunding and neglect over the decades leaving it vulnerable to illegal fishing exploitation by foreign vessels with China, the European Union and Belize notable for illegally exploiting Nigerian waters.”