Fishermen on Sierra Leone’s Sherbo Island say their catches have fallen dramatically in recent years, blaming large foreign fishing vessels for the decline.
"The nets are costing us up to $250 each time we need to replace them," says Musa Gassimo, a local fisherman who claims that trawlers cut their lines during the night.
Fishing at Risk
The fishermen’s story aligns with a 2024 global report that estimated 40% of unlicensed catches worldwide can be traced to West African waters. The report also estimates a $10 bn loss in revenue for the region.
Thomas Turay, the president of Sierra Leone’s Fishermen’s Union, describes the situation as a "severe overfishing of our seas" and blames the limits of government enforcement and corruption.
The government, however, insists that all large vessels must carry transponders that track movements and that penalties for breaching the exclusion zone exist, though no penalties have been imposed in the last decade.
International Response
Steve Trent of the Environmental Justice Foundation claims that the vast majority of ships violating the zone are Chinese, and calls for stronger international pressure and improved vessel monitoring to stop illegal fishing.
The Chinese foreign ministry has denied involvement in illegal fishing worldwide, yet allegations of overfishing in other regions continue to mount.
