European Parliament approves new EU-Gabon Fisheries protocol
The European Parliament has approved today a new EU-Gabon Fisheries protocol. Fishing vessels from Spain and France are now allowed, under this new protocol, to fish in the waters of the Gabonese Republic in return for an annual EU payment of € 1.35 million. Of this amount, € 450.000 is allocated to assist the Gabonese fishing sector. This represents a significant increase compared to the previous protocol. The new protocol covers a period of three years, and the reference tonnage amounts to 20,000 tonnes.
Commissioner Damanaki welcomed the vote of the European Parliament by saying: "Our agreement with Gabon is yet another example of the new generation of sustainable fisheries agreements which guarantee environmentally sustainability for the stocks concerned while ensuring economic profitability for the EU fleet".
