[ParlTrack]

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1, 1 a (new)

1. Notes the importance of the EU- Guinea-Bissau SFPA, both for Guinea- Bissau and for EU fleets operating in the Guinea-Bissau fishing zone; emphasises that there could be more effective fisheries cooperation between the EU and Guinea- Bissau and reiterates its call on the Commission to take every step required to make the new Protocol on implementing the agreement more ambitious and clearer than its predecessors so as to ensure that this SFPA leads to a satisfactory level of development of the local fisheries sector in overall terms and increased added value for coastal communities, does not undermine their food security and sovereignty and is consistent with the objectives referred to in UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development and with the development objectives set out in Article 208 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union; 1 a. Encourages the Commission to develop a more ambitious partnership agreement facilitating the export of fishing products, sustainably processed on the African continent and provided it does not undermine food security of the local population;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2, 2 a (new)

2. Considers that the objectives of the EU-Guinea-Bissau SFPA have been realised to varying degrees: while the agreement has offered and still provides considerable fishing opportunities for EU vessels from several Member States in the Guinea-Bissau fishing zone, in view of the considerable use made of those opportunities by European vessel owners, the same cannot be said of the local fisheries sector, whose development remains insufficient or unsatisfactory overall; recalls that Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest, most unstable and Least Developed Countries in the region; 2 a. Advocates for infrastructure to be developed and fishery products to be exploited in a way that ensures tangible results for local and artisanal fisheries, prioritising their needs and supporting infrastructure development and market access;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5, 5 a, 5 b, 5 c (new)

5. Welcomes the contribution of EU vessels to food security in Guinea- Bissau through direct landings, as specified in Chapter V of the Annex to the Protocol, for the benefit of local communities and to promote internal fish trade and consumption, while deploring the fact that the tonnage involved is low with 94 tonnes reported in 2022; 5 a. Notes that the main problem facing the small-scale fisheries sector is the lack of infrastructure for landing, preserving, and processing fish products; recalls that small-scale fisheries make a major contribution to food security, with fish being the main source of protein available at an affordable price; stresses that the long-term food security needs of the population should be prioritised and highlights the importance of maintaining sustainable fish stocks to ensure food security for coastal communities; reminds that 97% of the stocks fished in Guinea-Bissau is landing in other countries; encourages therefore European vessels to land at least 2% to the local population; 5 b. Welcomes the fact that the for the first time in an SFPA, the preamble to the Guinea-Bissau-EU protocol refers to the FAO Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries; underlines that their inclusion in the protocol text shows the determination of both parties to make this sector a priority; however, notes that artisanal fishing communities were not consulted at any stage in the process of drawing up the new protocol; stresses that EU’s commitment to support the local fisheries sector in Guinea- Bissau entails to involve their participation in the identification of priorities for the use of sectoral support funds; 5 c. Calls on the Guinea-Bissau's government and the Commission to improve the participation of coastal and small-scale fishing communities during the implementation of the new protocol, notably ahead of the Joint Committee meetings;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10, 10 a (new)

10. Urges the Commission and Member States, in their cooperation and official development assistance policies, to take into account the fact that the ~~European Development Fund (EDF)~~Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument - Global Europe and its multiannual indicative programme 2021-2027, and sectoral support provided for in the EU- Guinea-Bissau SFPA should complement each other and be fully coordinated, with a view to strengthening the local fisheries sector and ensuring food security for coastal communities; 10 a. Stresses that training of artisanal fishers, notably for women, is a necessary condition to the development of the local fisheries sector; urges the EU to also use sectoral support funds to this effect;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)

14 a. Recalls that Guinea-Bissau is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change; calls for the conservation of marine ecosystems, funding for efforts to combat coastal erosion, and broad mitigation measures for the impacts of climate change on fisheries;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a, 17 b (new)

17 a. Stresses that Guinea-Bissau’s GDP is heavily reliant on its marine resources; highlights the importance of supporting scientific assessments of fish stocks and ensuring that catch limits and quotas are adhered to in order to remain within sustainable limits and prevent the depletion of marine resources; 17 b. Encourages the Commission to promote the use of sectoral support in order to accentuate surveillance, controls and develop scientific research on stocks such as through a laboratory in order to train local workers to EU standards on hygiene, fish processing and packaging; training is a long-term investment for the development of the local blue economy, fish trade, protecting of local businesses and environment;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)

21 a. Calls on the EU to address the lack of transparency in the fishing sector in Guinea-Bissau which results i.e. from flags of convenience, flag hopping, complex corporate structures and lack of public information on beneficial owners recalls that robust and reliable data as well as transparent information is needed to calculate the available surplus; recalls that illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing damages food security and the livelihoods of people in coastal countries as well as ocean’s ecosystems; notes with concern that Guinea-Bissau is developing into a fast-emerging flag of convenience, which hampers the fight against IUU; notes that selling boats to joint ventures majority-owned by local partners is one of the key ways in which foreign companies can access West African countries’ flags; urges the EU to limit flags of convenience and re-flagging as a means to combat IUU fishing and comply with high sustainability standards; urges equally the EU Member States to continue promoting transparency of corporate structure;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

Udo BULLMANN

Draft motion for a resolution
Recitals D a (new), H, I, L, M, N, O a, O b, O c, O d (new), S

H. whereas the first fisheries agreement between the European Economic Community and Guinea-Bissau dates back to 1980; whereas the previous Protocol to the agreement expired on 14 June 2024; whereas the results achieved under the development cooperation component of the agreements (i.e. sectoral support) are not satisfactory overall; whereas improvements have nonetheless been recorded as regards capacity for fisheries monitoring, control and surveillance and sanitary inspection, as well as Guinea-Bissau’s involvement in regional fisheries bodies; whereas sectoral cooperation needs to be stepped up in order to better promote the development of the local fisheries sector and related industries and activities so as to ensure that a greater proportion of the added value created through exploitation of the country’s natural resources remains in Guinea- Bissau; I. whereas development of the fisheries sector in Guinea-Bissau calls for the establishment of basic infrastructure, such as ports, landing sites, storage facilities and processing plants, which are still lacking or are being built by other third countries competing with the EU, with the aim of attracting landings of fish caught in Guinea-Bissau waters; L. whereas there is a need to ensure that a greater proportion of the added value generated through exploitation of fishery resources in the Guinea-Bissau fishing zone remains in the country; M. whereas direct job creation in the fisheries sector in Guinea-Bissau is uncommon and limited, even in the case of local crew members on board vessels and women working and earning their living in the fisheries sector; N. whereas, by comparison with the previous Protocol, the number of seafarers to be signed on in the EU fleet has increased significantly; whereas EU vessel owners must endeavour to sign on additional Guinea-Bissau seafarers; whereas the Guinea-Bissau authorities must draw up and keep up to date an indicative list of qualified seafarers who could be signed on to EU vessels, and sectoral support may be provided for training local seafarers in accordance with International Maritime Organisation (IMO) standards; S. whereas Parliament must be kept closely informed at all stages of the procedures concerning the ProtocolD a. whereas artisanal catches are not enough to supply the local markets; whereas overexploitation of small pelagic remains an urgent problem in terms of food security for local population; whereas the increased production of fishmeal, which is processed mostly from small pelagic species, either on land in fishmeal plants or directly on factory ships, is one of the main factors contributing to the overexploitation of these stocks in the region; whereas there is a lack of transparency about who supplies these fishmeal plants and who are their beneficial owners; H. whereas the first fisheries agreement between the European Economic Community and Guinea-Bissau dates back to 1980; whereas the previous Protocol to the agreement expired on 14 June 2024; whereas the results achieved under the development cooperation component of the agreements (i.e. sectoral support) are not satisfactory overall; whereas improvements have nonetheless been recorded as regards capacity for fisheries monitoring, control and surveillance and sanitary inspection, as well as Guinea-Bissau’s involvement in regional fisheries bodies; whereas sectoral cooperation with local coastal communities needs to be stepped up in order to better promote the development of the local fisheries sector and related industries and activities so as to ensure that a greater proportion of the added value created through exploitation of the country’s natural resources remains in Guinea-Bissau; I. whereas development of the fisheries sector in Guinea-Bissau calls for the establishment of basic and functioning infrastructures, such as ports, landing sites, storage facilities and processing plants, which are still lacking or are being built by other third countries competing with the EU, with the aim of attracting landings of fish caught in Guinea-Bissau waters; L. whereas there is a need to ensure that a greater proportion of the added value generated through exploitation of fishery resources in the Guinea-Bissau fishing zone remains in the country; whereas the EU should encourage local authorities to apply this recommendation to EU vessels but also to foreign fleets operating in Guinea-Bissau's fishing zone; M. whereas direct job creation in the fisheries sector in Guinea-Bissau is uncommon and limited, even in the case of local crew members on board vessels and women working and earning their living in the fisheries sector; whereas important part of the sectoral support should be allocated to support artisanal fishery, women processors and local trade; N. whereas, by comparison with the previous Protocol, the number of seafarers to be signed on in the EU fleet has increased significantly; whereas EU vessel owners must endeavour to sign on additional Guinea-Bissau seafarers; whereas the Guinea-Bissau authorities must draw up and keep up to date an indicative list of qualified seafarers who could be signed on to EU vessels, and sectoral support may be provided for training local seafarers in accordance with International Maritime Organisation (IMO) standards also promoting local surveillance and controls in order to protect artisanal fisheries sector; O a. whereas SFPA encourages the establishment of joint fishing ventures between European and local companies; but whereas such joint ventures, despite being an important source of seafood supply to the EU market and consumers, establishing the same health and sanitary standards as those for EU companies, and promoting respect of international conventions, compete with the small-scale fisheries sector; O b. whereas using flags of convenience (the practice of registering vessels in countries with weak rules that bears no association with the nationality of the vessel’s owner or operator) and flag hopping (the practice of repeated and rapid reflagging to avoid rules and restrictions to limit activities) increase the risks of IUU fishing and avoid accountability; O c. whereas transparency - the open and accessible sharing of information about vessels, fishing activities and how fisheries are managed - enables accountability and equitable access to marine resources; whereas a lack of transparency around foreign boats that join local fleets makes it impossible to track how much fish they are extracting; O d. whereas access to beneficial ownership information is crucial for law enforcement to uncover illegal fishing, reveal conceal networks, and identify the individuals and companies benefiting from these activities by tracing the flow of profits; S. whereas Parliament must be kept closely informed at all stages of the procedures concerning the Protocol, its changes or its renewal;

2025/01/24
Committee: DEVE

8 Amendments of Udo BULLMANN related to 2024/0159M(NLE)

ParlTrack - 2011-2024