on the allocation of fishing opportunities under the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco and the Implementation Protocol thereto

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL

•Reasons for and objectives of the proposal

A Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Kingdom of Morocco entered into force on 28 February 2007. The last Implementation Protocol to this Agreement entered into force on 15 July 2014 and expired on 14 July 2018. More generally, the current Partnership Agreement is part of the relations between the Union and Morocco under the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an Association on 26 February 1996 between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Kingdom of Morocco, of the other part, which entered into force in 2000. The aim of the Agreement is to ensure the sound management and sustainability of fisheries resources from the ecological, economic and social point of view.

On the basis of the negotiating directives adopted by the Council, the Commission conducted negotiations with the Government of Morocco with a view to amending the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Kingdom of Morocco and agreeing on a new Implementation Protocol thereto.

These negotiations and the resulting texts take full account of the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 27 February 2018 in Case C-266/16, whereby the Fisheries Agreement and the Protocol thereto do not apply to the waters adjacent to the territory of Western Sahara. In view of the considerations set out in the Court of Justice’s judgment, and in accordance with the wishes of both parties, during the negotiations it was nonetheless possible to include that territory and the waters adjacent thereto in the Fisheries Partnership for several reasons. Firstly, from an economic point of view, it is important for the Union fleet to carry out its fishing activities, including in those waters, within a legally secure framework with a clearly specified geographical scope. Another objective is to ensure that this territory and its population benefit from the economic and social impacts of the Agreement, in a way that is proportionate to the fishing activities, in particular through the catches landed by the EU fleet, the employment of seamen, as well as investments and other support for the sector made possible by the financial contribution provided for in the Protocol to the Fisheries Agreement. In addition, it should be noted that the Kingdom of Morocco, which administers this territory (at least the greater part), is the only entity with which such an agreement can be concluded in the light of the fact that no other entity could guarantee the sustainable exploitation of those resources and the management and monitoring of the funds of the sectoral support available for the territory of Western Sahara and its population.

In addition, the proposal for a new Agreement and a new Protocol complies fully with international and Union law. The Union has constantly reaffirmed its commitment to the settlement of the dispute in Western Sahara and supports the efforts of the UN Secretary-General and his personal envoy to assist the parties in reaching a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution. In this respect, the exchange of letters accompanying this proposal reiterates the Union’s position with regard to Western Sahara.

The texts agreed upon by the negotiators following a number of meetings include the Agreement itself, which establishes a Sustainable Fisheries Partnership between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco (‘the Fisheries Agreement’) and replaces the 2007 Agreement, a new Implementation Protocol, an Annex and Appendices, and an exchange of letters. These texts were initialled on 24 July 2018.

The Protocol covers a period of four years as from the date of its application, as defined in Article 16 thereof. The new Fisheries Agreement repeals the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Kingdom of Morocco that entered into force on 28 February 2007. It provides for the possibility of its provisional application prior to its conclusion; however, it is not considered necessary to propose such a provisional application. The new Agreement aims to reflect the principles of the 2009 reform: good fisheries governance and sustainability, respect for human rights, transparency and non-discrimination. Amending the Agreement is necessary also in order to comply with the Court’s judgment of 27 February 2018 and provide the legal basis for applying the Agreement to the waters adjacent to the territory of Western Sahara.

In accordance with the negotiating directives, the Fisheries Agreement provides guarantees for a fair geographical distribution of the socio-economic benefits, in a way proportionate to the fishing activities, resulting from the use of the total financial contribution under the Agreement (i.e. financial compensation for access, sectoral support and fees paid by shipowners). These guarantees include, in particular, monitoring the allocation of such funds and their use, which is the duty, above all, of the Joint Committee set up by the Agreement and where both parties are represented. There are also provisions whereby Morocco is to submit regular reports on the activities carried out under this Agreement.

Finally, this proposal is accompanied by a Commission staff working document (SWD) entitled ‘Report on the evaluation of the benefits for the population of Western Sahara resulting from the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco and the Implementation Protocol thereto and on the consultation of that population’. That report includes an assessment of the potential implications of the Agreement and the Protocol thereto for sustainable development, in particular regarding the impact on the population concerned and the exploitation of the natural resources of the territories concerned, and a summary of the consultation of these populations, in accordance with the negotiating directives, under which inclusion of these populations is a decisive element when renewing the Fisheries Agreement. The Protocol provides for fishing opportunities for 128 vessels in 6 categories: – two categories of small-scale fishing in the north: pelagic fishing with seines (category 1, 22 vessels) and with bottom-set longlines (category 2, 35 vessels); – small-scale fishing in the south with pole-lines (category 3, 10 vessels); – demersal fishing in the south with bottom trawls and with bottom-set longlines (category 4, 16 vessels); – small-scale tuna fishing with poles (category 5, 27 vessels); – industrial pelagic fishing with pelagic or semi-pelagic trawls and with purse seines (category 6, 18 vessels). In this category, authorised catches by Union vessels are limited to different amounts depending on the year of application of the Protocol.

These fishing opportunities should be allocated among Member States.