EU lifts ban on Ghana's fish exports

The European Union (EU) has lifted the fish export ban on Ghana, an official statement said on Thursday, citing significant reforms in Ghana's fisheries governance as the reason for the latest decision.

Ghana was last year banned from exporting fish to the EU markets due to fallen standards for practicing illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

The illegal fishing is a major threat to global marine resources as overfishing destroys the livelihoods of many communities who depend on fisheries.

It is estimated that between 11 million to 26 million tons of fish are caught illegally a year, corresponding to at least 15 percent of world catches.

As the world's largest importer of fisheries products, the EU has adopted a firm stance against illegal fishing worldwide. No access of fisheries products is allowed to the EU market unless they are certified as legally fished.

Such trade sanctions are currently in place for Cambodia, Guinea and Sri Lanka, which received a red card from the EU.

European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Karmenu Vella said the decisions demonstrated the determination of the EU to bring important players on board in the fight against illegal fishing.

He said both Ghana and Papua New Guinea had taken ownership of their fisheries reforms and now had robust legal and policy frameworks in place to fight illegal fishing activities.

According to the EU, Ghana and Papua New Guinea have amended their legal frameworks to combat illegal fishing, strengthened their sanctioning systems, improved monitoring and control of their fleets and are now complying with international law. Endit