Africa-Press. The fishing agreement between Gabon and the European Union is approaching its end, with the expiration date set for June 28, 2026. Negotiations are ongoing between the two sides regarding the possibility of reaching a new agreement, amid diverging positions on the financial and developmental terms related to the exploitation of Gabon’s marine resources.
The Gabonese government announced a year ago that it did not wish to renew the current agreement, which allows around 30 European vessels to fish for tuna in the country’s territorial waters. They argued that the financial compensation offered by the European Union does not reflect the true value of the exploited marine wealth.
If a new agreement is not reached, European vessels will be prohibited from fishing in Gabonese waters starting June 29, 2026, marking an unprecedented step in nearly four decades, as the first fishing agreements between the two parties date back to 1988.
The European Union asserts that the current agreement provides mutual benefits for both parties, noting that Gabon receives an annual financial contribution of 2.6 million euros, including 1.6 million euros for access to Gabonese waters and one million euros to support the local fishing sector, in addition to nearly one million euros paid directly by European vessel owners each year.
In contrast, the Gabonese government believes that these financial contributions remain limited compared to the volume of resources extracted from its waters. The Minister of the Sea, Fisheries, and Blue Economy in Gabon, Émile Martial Massamba, stated that the current agreement no longer aligns with the country’s developmental ambitions, emphasizing the rejection of a model that exports marine resources in raw form without achieving added value within Gabon.
The minister added that his country seeks a new agreement that ensures greater benefits for the national economy, either through increased financial returns or by enhancing local processing and manufacturing of marine products.
For its part, the European Union expressed its readiness to consider all Gabonese proposals, affirming that European vessels target fish species that do not compete with local fishermen’s activities, primarily tropical tuna. It also stressed that fishing operations are based on scientific recommendations to ensure sustainable exploitation of surplus fish stocks.
However, environmental organizations, including Greenpeace Africa, have expressed reservations about the agreement, calling for a ban on fishing methods deemed harmful to the marine environment, as well as the necessity to process fish products locally before exporting them to foreign markets.
These developments come months after Senegal ended its fishing agreement with the European Union at the end of 2024, indicating a growing demand from some African countries to reconsider the terms of exploitation of their marine resources and maximize local economic returns.
