Distant water industrial fishing in developing countries: A case study of Madagascar

Abstract

As industrial vessels continue to expand in both extractive capacity and spatial range, concerns have grown over foreign industrial fishing occurring within the marine territories of developing countries, both legally and illegally. Madagascar's status as a "least developed country", coupled with its high marine biodiversity, makes its waters particularly susceptible to fishing by distant water fishing nations (DWFNs). However, given constraints in management and research, it is unclear how foreign industrial fishing may impact local resources and biodiversity that many coastal communities depend on for food security, cultural meaning and livelihoods. We used satellite-derived fishing effort data from 2012-2020, via Global Fishing Watch, to analyze industrial fishing effort occurring within Madagascar's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). We documented 907,643 hours of industrial fishing within the Madagascar EEZ across 277 vessels from 17 different countries. We found that Taiwanese vessels using drifting longlines, with a focus on tuna, and Malagasy shrimp trawlers were the most prevalent. Fishing effort was highly seasonal and increased with higher global fish prices and the Indian Ocean Dipole. We also found a number of instances of foreign fishing vessels operating close to shore and within a number of marine protected areas. These results highlight the need for increased transparency surrounding foreign fishing agreements and unauthorized fishing within the waters of developing countries. Increases in industrial fishing effort and encroachment into near-shore areas has the potential to severely threaten current sustainable fisheries management initiatives by conservation organizations and coastal communities.