WRITTEN QUESTION E-2025/01

by Margrietus van den Berg (PSE) to the Commission

(13 July 2001)

Subject: Fisheries agreement with Mauritania

1. For the new agreement with Mauritania, the European Union is demanding access to the same quantity of fish as under the previous protocol, despite knowing that certain fish stocks are already being overfished now. By means of what procedure did the Commission arrive at its negotiating position, and how does the negotiating mandate take account of the precautionary principle and the principle that poverty should be combated?

2. The assessment of the previous protocol is extremely incomplete. Does the Commission have sufficient data about fish stocks and about Mauritania's fishing capacity to conclude a new protocol, bearing in mind the precautionary principle and the principle that fishing should be sustainable? (The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is also relevant here, as it lays down that fisheries agreements may only be concluded in respect of the surplus fish in the waters of a third country).

3. What connection is there between the negotiations on the fisheries agreement with Mauritania and the drafting of Mauritania's Country Strategy Paper under the Cotonou Agreement, and in this context how, in particular, is account taken of the participation of local fishermen and the non-industrial fishing sector both in the structure of the Country Strategy Paper and in the negotiations on the fisheries agreement?

4. To what extent does the European Union intend to invest in the further development of the fish-processing industry in Mauritania, particularly as regards complying with the health and plant-health requirements applied by the EU? Are there accompanying measures to ensure that non-industrial fishermen, in particular, can comply with these requirements?

5. To what extent can the European Union guarantee that the financial compensation payable under a new protocol will benefit the local fishery sector in Mauritania?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(8 October 2001)

1. The Commission sets its negotiating position by taking into account all relevant factors that are available. These include appropriate scientific advice reports from various sources, some of which point to a certain recovery of some stocks, particularly cephalopods. The current negotiations with Mauritania concern the renewal of a protocol to an existing fisheries agreement. Therefore, following established practice, these negotiations do not require a negotiating mandate from Council.

2. The Commission considers all scientific data available while recognising that these could be improved quantitatively as well as qualitatively. The Commission has received information showing a decrease in fishing capacity in the last few years caused by a gradual and continuous decrease in the number of so called chinese vessels that operated in Mauritanian waters.

3. Mauritania's strategy paper takes account of the fisheries agreement with the Community in that the economic analysis of the country incorporates the budget impact of that agreement. Thus, although no budget assistance is currently provided for under the ninth European Development Fund (EDF), some sectoral policy objectives have been selected (e.g. health and education). The country strategy for Mauritania also provides for the possibility of helping the government to elaborate a national strategy for fishing. Furthermore, under the ninth European Development Fund a number of measures will be geared directly to civil society, which should benefit associations of small-scale fishermen, among others. Moreover, the new protocol for the period 2001-2006 provides for support measures for small-scale fishing.

4. A portion of the compensation under the new protocol will be allocated to targeted actions. These are agreed following a request by Mauritania and they are subjected to specific procedures and follow-up by the Commission. Under this framework, the Commission would, in principle, give favourable consideration to a funding request by Mauritania to improve compliance with Community requirements on health and plant-health requirements by non-industrial fishermen, in particular.

5. The use of the financial compensation, with the exception of the targeted actions, is decided exclusively by Mauritania, as a sovereign nation.