Mauritius, Seychelles renegotiate fishing agreement for better deal

Seychelles and Mauritius are finetuning the Sustainable Fishing Agreement  that currently exists between the two countries and discuss research possibilities in a six-day meeting which started on Friday, according to the Seychelles News Agency.

The two countries will also discuss the agreements they both have with foreign nations that fish in the Indian Ocean such as the EU – that represents mainly Spanish and French tuna purse seiners.

Mauritian fisheries minister Sudheer Maudhoo was quoted as saying that “at the end of the day, it is not Seychelles and Mauritius doing the bulk of the fishing but rather foreign vessels.”

He added that “we need to look at how our countries can profit at a maximum from the resources that we have been given. We need to rectify the fact that foreign nations are exploiting our resources more in their interest, getting the maximum out of it, with us getting the minimum. There is also the need for more surveillance and control.”

The two ministers also want to come to an arrangement for the two countries to carry out research at the Saya de Malha Bank, the largest shallow bank found on the Mascarene Plateau, which is jointly managed by Seychelles and Mauritius.

The results of the research will show if they will be able to make extra revenue by sustainably exploiting this joint area, they said.