REPORT containing a motion for a non-legislative resolution on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Protocol on the implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (2018-2024)

28.1.2019 - (10858/2018 – C8-0387/2018 – 2018/0267M(NLE))

Committee on Fisheries
Rapporteur: João Ferreira

Procedure : 2018/0267M(NLE)
Document stages in plenary
Document selected :  
A8-0034/2019

MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT NON-LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Protocol on the implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (2018-2024)

(10858/2018 – C8-0387/2018 – 2018/0267M(NLE))

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the draft Council decision (10858/2018),

–  having regard to the Protocol on the implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (2018-2024) (10856/2018),

–  having regard to the request for consent submitted by the Council in accordance with Article 43, Article 218(6), second subparagraph, point (a)(v), and Article 218(7) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (C8-0387/2018),

–  having regard to its legislative resolution of ... on the draft decision[1],

–  having regard to Rule 99(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Fisheries and the opinion of the Committee on Development (A8-0034/2019),

A.  whereas the Commission and the Government of Côte d’Ivoire have negotiated a new sustainable fisheries partnership agreement (EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPA) and implementing protocol for a six-year period;

B.  whereas the overall aim of the EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPA is to increase fisheries cooperation between the EU and Côte d’Ivoire, in the interests of both parties, by promoting a sustainable fisheries policy and sustainable exploitation of fishery resources in the Côte d’Ivoire exclusive economic zone (EEZ);

C.  whereas the uptake of fishing opportunities under the previous EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPA amounted, on average, to 79 %, a figure considered to be good on the whole; whereas during that period, however, longliners did not make use of the fishing opportunities available;

D.  whereas the fact that the EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPAs have been concluded one after the other has been helping Côte d’Ivoire’s economy to the extent that local seamen and the Abidjan port and canning facilities have been used, the by-catches of EU tuna seiners have been turned to account, and local monitoring capacities have been strengthened (although they are considered to be generally modest);

E.  whereas the EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPA should promote more effective sustainable development of the Ivorian fishing communities and of related industries and activities; whereas the support to be provided under the Protocol has to be consistent with the national development plans – in particular the Strategic Plan for the Development of Livestock, Fisheries, and Aquaculture (PSDEPA) – and the Blue Growth Action Plan, devised with the United Nations to increase production in, and professionalise, the sector in order to meet the population’s food and employment needs; whereas, according to the above-mentioned Strategic Plan, achieving those aims requires a budget of more than EUR 140 million;

F.  whereas the EU, through the European Development Fund, is contributing a multiannual budget of EUR 273 million for Côte d’Ivoire, focusing on, among other areas, infrastructure, health, and humanitarian aid;

1.  Takes the view that the EU-Côte-d’Ivoire SFPA should pursue two equally important goals: (1) providing fishing opportunities for EU vessels in the Côte d’Ivoire EEZ, on the basis of the best available scientific advice and without interfering with conservation and management measures by the regional organisations to which Côte d’Ivoire belongs – primarily the ICCAT – or overrunning the available surplus; and (2) promoting cooperation between the EU and Côte d’Ivoire with a view to a sustainable fisheries policy and sound exploitation of fishery resources in the Côte d’Ivoire fishing zone, and contributing to sustainable development of the Ivorian fisheries sector through economic, financial, technical, and scientific cooperation, without undermining Côte d’Ivoire’s sovereign options and strategies regarding that development;

2.  Draws attention to the findings of the retrospective and prospective assessment of the Protocol to the EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPA, produced in September 2017, which stated that the Protocol to the 2013-2018 SFPA had on the whole proved to be effective, efficient, appropriate to the interests involved, and consistent with the Ivorian sectoral policy and a high degree of acceptability to stakeholders, and which recommended the option of concluding a new protocol;

3.  Maintains that the EU-Côte d’Ivoire SFPA and the Protocol thereto, when they are implemented and if they should be revised and/or renewed, have to allow for and be aligned with the PSDEPA and the Blue Growth Plan for the development of the Ivorian fisheries sector, and specifically should:

–  Improve governance: drafting and validating legislation and building on management plans;

–  Tighten up control and surveillance in the Côte d’Ivoire EEZ;

–  Strengthen measures to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, including in inland waters;

–  Enable landing quays and ports to be constructed and/or renovated, including at – but not limited to – the Port of Abidjan;

  –  Improve conditions at smokehouses, particularly for women, thus making for a more effective curing system;

–  Support the improvement of working conditions for women, who are primarily responsible for dealing with by-catch;

–  Establish marine protected areas;

  –  Strengthen partnerships with third countries in the form of fisheries agreements, ensuring transparency through the publication of the contents of these agreements, and also by establishing a regional programme for the training and use of observers;

–  Enable fish markets to be built;

  –  Enable the reinforcement of organisations representing men and women in the fishing industry, especially those involved in artisanal fishing, thereby helping to strengthen technical, management and negotiating capabilities;

–  Serve to set up and/or refurbish basic and vocational training centres, thereby raising the skill levels of fishermen and seamen;

–  Enhance scientific research capabilities and the ability to monitor fishery resources;

–  Improve the sustainability of marine resources overall;

4.  Considers that the rules regarding the hiring of ACP seamen for EU fishing vessels, amounting to 20 % of the crew, could be more ambitious; reiterates the need to abide by ILO principles and, in particular, advocates the signing of ILO Convention No. 188, implying as this does an obligation to observe the general principles of freedom of association and free collective bargaining for workers and of non-discrimination in employment and at work; also calls for consideration to be given to the demands of local seamen’s unions that social security, health and retirement cover for ACP seamen be translated better into effect;

5.  Considers that information should be compiled on the benefits that the implementation of the Protocol brings to local economies (employment, infrastructure, social improvements);

6.  Considers it desirable to improve the quantity and accuracy of data on all catches (target species and by-catches) and on the conservation status of fishery resources and to improve the implementation of sectoral support funding in order that the impact of the Agreement on the marine ecosystem and fishing communities can be gauged more exactly; calls on the Commission to help ensure that the bodies responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Agreement, including a joint scientific committee to be set up for that purpose, can operate regularly and transparently, with the involvement of artisanal fishermen’s and women fish smokers associations, trade unions, representatives of coastal communities, and Ivorian civil society organisations;

7.  Calls on the Commission and the Member States, in their cooperation and official development assistance policies centring on Côte d’Ivoire, to bear in mind that the European Development Fund and the sectoral support laid down in this SFPA should complement each other with a view to contributing more rapidly and effectively to the empowerment of local fishing communities and to the full exercise of Côte d’Ivoire’s sovereignty over that country’s resources;

8.  Calls on the Commission to urge the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire to use the financial contribution provided by the protocol to sustainably strengthen its national fisheries industry, encouraging demand for local investment and industrial projects, and creating local jobs;

9.  Calls on the Commission to send to Parliament and make publicly available the minutes and conclusions of the meetings of the Joint Committee provided for in Article 9 of the Agreement, the multiannual sectoral programme provided for in Article 4 of the Protocol, and the findings of the annual evaluations; calls on the Commission to enable representatives of Parliament to attend Joint Committee meetings as observers and to encourage the participation of Côte d’Ivoire fishing communities;

10.  Calls on the Commission and the Council, acting within the limits of their powers, to keep Parliament immediately and fully informed at every stage of the procedures relating to the Protocol and, if applicable, its renewal, pursuant to Article 13(2) of the Treaty on European Union and Article 218(10) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;

11.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the Government and Parliament of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire.

  • [1]  Texts adopted, P8_TA(0000)0000.

OPINION of the Committee on Development (18.12.2018)

for the Committee on Fisheries

on a motion for a non-legislative resolution on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Protocol on the implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (2018-2024)
(2018/0267M(NLE))

Rapporteur for opinion: Eleni Theocharous

SUGGESTIONS

The Committee on Development calls on the Committee on Fisheries, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following suggestions into its motion for a resolution:

The Commission should duly take into account the following points during the implementation of the agreement:

1.  Access for EU vessels should be limited to the fisheries resources that Côte d’Ivoire lacks the capacity to harvest (surplus resources) and should never entail catches that exceed the maximum sustainable yield; the local population’s nutritional needs should have priority, in order to improve food security, and be reflected in local landing obligations;

2.  The Commission should urge the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire to use the financial contribution provided by the protocol for sectoral support to sustainably strengthen its national fisheries industry, particularly artisanal fishing, encouraging demand for local investment and industrial projects in the blue economy, and creating local jobs;

3.  The Commission should endeavour to include in the multiannual sectoral programme, provided for in Article 4 of the protocol, objectives which:

–  promote the sustainable development of the local, and in particular artisanal, fishing and fish-processing sector, as well as other local activities and partnerships linked to this sector;

–  promote the role of women and young people in artisanal fisheries, notably by regulating the sale of by-catch and of lower quality tuna, so‑called ‘false fish’, so that a fair share is sold directly to local market actors;

–  reinforce fisheries monitoring, control and surveillance in Ivorian waters by establishing a coherent Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) protection strategy, and thus further prevent illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and its adverse economic, social and environmental effects;

–  guarantee transparency of the use of sectoral funding under the protocol, in order to monitor and improve absorption rates and ensure that the agreement delivers tangible results in support of local fisheries and the local population in general;

4.  The Commission should provide support to the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire in managing its absorption capacity of the funds received in order to ensure both their optimal use and that the agreement delivers tangible results for local fishing and the local population in general;

5.  Employment possibilities for seamen from the ACP on EU vessels provided for by the protocol should be fully exploited, giving priority to Ivorian seamen;

6.  The Commission should endeavour to ensure that the monitoring and evaluation of activities set out in the protocol and in the ensuing multiannual sectoral programme are upheld in order to safeguard sustainable practices, labour laws and decent working conditions, and the human rights protections established in the agreement; an annual report should be submitted to Parliament and the Council to encourage transparency and ensure that the budget intended to support fisheries policy in Côte d’Ivoire is indeed used for that purpose; regional aspects should also be taken into account when the report is prepared so that the impact of fisheries agreements concluded by the EU in the region, and their effect on the fisheries agreement with Côte d’Ivoire, can be highlighted.

PROCEDURE – COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

Title

Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire and the European Community (2018-2024)

References

2018/0267M(NLE)

Committee responsible

 

PECH

 

 

 

 

Opinion by

       Date announced in plenary

DEVE

25.10.2018

Rapporteur

       Date appointed

Eleni Theocharous

19.9.2018

Discussed in committee

20.11.2018

 

 

 

Date adopted

13.12.2018

 

 

 

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

14

0

2

Members present for the final vote

Ignazio Corrao, Doru-Claudian Frunzulică, Enrique Guerrero Salom, Maria Heubuch, Teresa Jiménez-Becerril Barrio, Linda McAvan, Norbert Neuser, Maurice Ponga, Jean-Luc Schaffhauser, Elly Schlein, Bogusław Sonik, Eleni Theocharous, Mirja Vehkaperä, Joachim Zeller

Substitutes present for the final vote

Frank Engel

Substitutes under Rule 200(2) present for the final vote

Miguel Urbán Crespo

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL IN COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

14

+

ALDE

Mirja Vehkaperä

ECR

Eleni Theocharous

EFDD

Ignazio Corrao

ENF

Jean-Luc Schaffhauser

PPE

Frank Engel, Teresa Jiménez-Becerril Barrio, Maurice Ponga, Bogusław Sonik

S&D

Doru-Claudian Frunzulică, Enrique Guerrero Salom, Linda McAvan, Norbert Neuser, Elly Schlein

VERTS/ALE

Maria Heubuch

0

-

 

 

2

0

GUE/NGL

Miguel Urbán Crespo

PPE

Joachim Zeller

Key to symbols:

+  :  in favour

-  :  against

0  :  abstention

PROCEDURE – COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE

Title

Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire and the European Community (2018-2024)

References

2018/0267M(NLE)

Date of consultation / request for consent

28.9.2018

 

 

 

Committee responsible

       Date announced in plenary

PECH

25.10.2018

 

 

 

Committees asked for opinions

       Date announced in plenary

DEVE

25.10.2018

BUDG

25.10.2018

 

 

Not delivering opinions

       Date of decision

BUDG

9.7.2018

 

 

 

Rapporteurs

       Date appointed

João Ferreira

16.7.2018

 

 

 

Discussed in committee

27.11.2018

 

 

 

Date adopted

23.1.2019

 

 

 

Result of final vote

+:

–:

0:

23

2

0

Members present for the final vote

Marco Affronte, Clara Eugenia Aguilera García, Renata Briano, Alain Cadec, David Coburn, Richard Corbett, Linnéa Engström, Sylvie Goddyn, Ian Hudghton, Werner Kuhn, António Marinho e Pinto, Norica Nicolai, Liadh Ní Riada, Annie Schreijer-Pierik, Ricardo Serrão Santos, Isabelle Thomas, Ruža Tomašić, Peter van Dalen, Jarosław Wałęsa

Substitutes present for the final vote

Norbert Erdős, Verónica Lope Fontagné, Nosheena Mobarik, Maria Lidia Senra Rodríguez

Substitutes under Rule 200(2) present for the final vote

Tim Aker, Agustín Díaz de Mera García Consuegra, Jo Leinen

Date tabled

28.1.2019

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL IN COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE

23

+

ALDE

António Marinho e Pinto, Norica Nicolai

ECR

Peter van Dalen, Nosheena Mobarik, Ruža Tomašić

EFDD

Sylvie Goddyn

GUE/NGL

Liadh Ní Riada, Maria Lidia Senra Rodríguez

PPE

Alain Cadec, Agustín Díaz de Mera García Consuegra, Norbert Erdős, Werner Kuhn, Verónica Lope Fontagné, Annie Schreijer-Pierik, Jarosław Wałęsa

S&D

Clara Eugenia Aguilera García, Renata Briano, Richard Corbett, Ricardo Serrão Santos, Isabelle Thomas

VERTS/ALE

Marco Affronte, Linnéa Engström, Ian Hudghton

2

-

EFDD

Tim Aker, David Coburn

0

0

 

 

Key to symbols:

+  :  in favour

-  :  against

0  :  abstention

Last updated: 30 January 2019
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