The Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) has hosted a regional conference under the theme “Fisheries and Stability: A Global Issue?”.
They urged decisive international cooperation to confront escalating threats to marine resources and to harness fisheries as a strategic tool for peace, food security, and economic stability.
Delivering remarks on behalf of Air Commodore David Anetey Akrong, Acting Commandant of the KAIPTC, Ms Sylvia Homame Noagbesenu, Director of Policy Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, highlighted the far-reaching significance of fisheries, not only as a source of nutrition and income but also as a cornerstone of national development and stability.
“Fisheries are not only a source of food and livelihoods they are also essential to peace and stability,” Ms Noagbesenu said, adding that the sector presents a unique opportunity to tackle interconnected challenges in governance, security, and development.
Despite their centrality, fisheries face growing threats from Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, climate change, and unsustainable exploitation, she noted.
The complexity of these issues, she argued, necessitates cross-sector collaboration between governments, academia, security forces, and civil society.
“This conference offers a vital platform for reflection, experience-sharing, and the development of cooperative approaches that can ensure an enabling environment for coastal and maritime security,” she added.
Reaffirming the Centre’s commitment to the ideals of the late Kofi Annan, Ms Noagbesenu emphasised that sustained peace is achievable through dialogue, multilateral cooperation, and joint responsibility.
She commended the French Embassy in Ghana for its steadfast support of the conference and regional maritime initiatives.
“Multilateral partnerships are indispensable to building sustainable peace,” she said. “Let us seize this opportunity to craft practical, actionable strategies to secure our fisheries for future generations.”
Representing the Deputy Minister for Defence, Ernest Brogya Gyamfi, Brigadier Ben Gah, Principal General Staff Officer at the Ministry of Defence, delivered an assessment of the security implications of marine resource degradation.
“Our territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone are not just economic zones they are extensions of our sovereign territory,” he asserted.
“When they are violated, it is not merely fish we lose it is economic control, state authority, and regional stability.”
Brigadier Gah highlighted the alarming overlap between IUU fishing and transnational organised crime, including smuggling, trafficking, and piracy, warning that illegal fishing vessels increasingly serve as conduits for illicit activities.
“Maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea is a direct threat to national and regional stability,” he said, calling for strengthened surveillance, enforcement, and international collaboration.
To address these threats, Brigadier Gah outlined Ghana’s comprehensive maritime security strategy, built on three pillars:
Integration: The creation of a National Maritime Security Strategy that unites the Navy, Air Force, Marine Police, Fisheries Commission, and intelligence agencies under a single operational command through the National Maritime Operations Centre.
Investment: Significant upgrades in maritime surveillance capacity, including patrol vessels, coastal radar systems, and unmanned aerial vehicles. Law enforcement officers are receiving specialised training in maritime interdiction and fisheries law.
International Cooperation: Ghana remains an active contributor to the Yaoundé Architecture for Maritime Security and hosts the Multinational Maritime Coordination Centre for Zone F, facilitating joint patrols and intelligence-sharing with partners from Côte d’Ivoire to Nigeria.
“Regional cooperation is not optional it is essential,” Brigadier Gah stated. “No nation can police the sea alone.”
He also appealed for greater international support, including technology transfers, hardware assistance, and rigorous compliance monitoring for foreign vessels operating in Ghana’s waters.
Emelia Kobiaba Arthur, Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, also delivered a compelling address, highlighting that fisheries, while long viewed as an economic pillar, are now at the epicentre of ecological and security crises.
“Fisheries are a lifeline,” she said. “They feed the world, sustain livelihoods, and support cultural identities. In Ghana alone, nearly three million people depend directly on fisheries.”
She cited the 2024 FAO State of World Fisheries Report, noting that 35% of global fish stocks are now overfished, with West Africa losing over $2.3 billion annually to IUU fishing.
“When fisheries collapse, communities unravel. Desperation grows, and conflict takes root,” she warned.
The Minister outlined a number of legislative and policy reforms designed to safeguard Ghana’s marine resources:
Passage of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Act, 2025 (Act 1146)
Expansion of the Inshore Exclusive Zone (IEZ) for artisanal fishers to 12 nautical miles
Enactment of the Fisheries Port State Measures Regulations, 2024 (L.I. 2490)
Ratification of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies
Suspension of four industrial vessels for infractions
Strengthening of the Fisheries Enforcement Unit, now led by a naval officer
Improved electronic vessel monitoring and inter-agency collaboration
“We are not simply drafting policies we are enforcing them. But laws alone will not save our oceans. True sustainability is built on social partnerships and shared responsibility,” she said.
The Minister urged stakeholders to view sustainable fisheries not as a technocratic challenge, but as a moral obligation to future generations.
“Let us not betray the fisherman in Axim, the fishmonger in Tehran, or the child in Monrovia who depends on fish for survival,” she said. “Let us place people and planet before profit.”
She stressed the importance of transboundary cooperation, noting that Ghana continues to play a leading role in the Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea, aligns with the Africa Integrated Maritime Strategy (2050), and remains fully committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and Global Biodiversity Framework.
“Fish swim across borders and so must our cooperation,” she concluded.
