IS THE EU REALLY GOING TO PAY MORE FOR SEYCHELLES’ FISH?

IS THE EU REALLY GOING TO PAY MORE FOR SEYCHELLES’ FISH?

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind, which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away”. Matthew 13:47, 48

When Jesus spoke this parable to the multitudes gathered at the sea to listen to him, he was speaking metaphorically about the kingdom of heaven to obviously many people living nearby the water. Jesus was basically breaking down the complexities of heaven, so that the normal fishermen and seafarers living along the coast could understand Him in simple easy to understand language.

In much the same way, Seychellois, as a sea faring and inter-dependent people, deserve to have the complexities of the government’s modern fisheries policies broken down for them in an easy to understand language; rather than expecting them to have to sift through the many figures and numbers that have become so commonplace in this administration’s effort to show improvement at any cost or to masked poor performances.

The latest “horn tooting” has been the supposed success of the Seychelles Fishing Authority’s (SFA) Chairman Finley Racombo and Ambassador to the European Union (EU) Barry Faure in their recent high level negotiation victory in Brussels, which resulted in the April 2nd front page in Seychelles Nation headlines entitled: “EU To Pay More For Seychelles Fish.” (????)

Plus 10 Minus 10 Surely Equals Zero

In the article, hoping that Seychellois don’t know how to count, one is informed that starting in April 2008, “. . . ship owners’ contribution per MT (metric tonne) will increase from 25 to 35 euros per tonne whilst the EC contribution per MT will decrease from 75 to 65 euros.” Breaking that down into layman’s terms for all the mathematical challenges: plus 10, minus 10, equals zero. And herein the numbers game begins.

Next, another enticing numbers promise given to the Seychelles people is that more money will be coming from an increase in “reference tonnage.” The reference tonnage currently in place is 55,000 metric tonnes and that will be increased to 63,000 metric tonnes in January 2008. But the question is: what is reference tonnage? After delving into the definition of this term, it is easy to see why the Seychelles Nation wasn’t very forthcoming in defining this term, because any positive gains from reference tonnage are almost non-existent and hard to get excited about. To define, reference tonnage is a quantity that the EU fleet is allowed to catch without having to pay extra “proportional” fees to the actual amount of fish caught.

Now, a commoner would deduce from the article that the extra proportional fees to be paid by the EU and the boat owners if they catch fish in excess of 63,000 MT must be significant - correct? So it is striking to learn, and pay attention here students, that the fees are the exact same 35 Euros per MT for a boat owner and the same 65 Euros for the European Union per MT if an EU vessel catches more than 63,000 MT.

Reference Tonnage Fee Has No Real Economic Benefits

Therefore, the reference tonnage is a nonsensical (absurd) number in that according to the rule of reference tonnage, the same amount is paid for fish caught in volumes less than 63,000 MT or in volumes greater that 63,000 MT. Take for example an EU purse-seine vessel fleet owned by the Spanish catches 40,000 MT in a year; they will pay 35 Euros per MT. That same fleet catches 70,000 MT in a year, and, surprisingly, they still pay the same 35 Euros per MT. Anyone thinking this is a good policy yet?

However, an even better example of how this reference tonnage fee has no real economic benefit whatsoever - is that if one takes the “add 10, minus 10” formula mentioned above, one will find that in proportion Seychelles will get the same amount of money in 2008 that it was getting in 2005. Not a cent more. Remember that zero fees added in 2008 equals the same fees accumulated as in 2005.

The Seychellois Negotiators Did Not Do Their Homework

Unfortunately, the real small benefit is coming from the usual financial handout compensation, as well as the paltry percentage increase in license fees charged to the EU vessels. Before the EU had to pay compensation of 4.125 million Euros for the first 55,000 MT and now they have to provide compensation of approximately 5.51 million Euros for 63,000 MT. That equates to only another 1.4 million Euros gained in financial handouts to catch and ship out no doubt in excess of 339,686 MT of tuna, which is what the EU shipped out in 2005 - according to the Port Victoria tuna transshipment statistics. The approximate commercial value of that tuna was estimated at over a half a billion U.S. dollars in 2005. What did we get out of it? Peanuts! Is President Michel aware of this fact? or is he simply swallowing the Gospel according to his loyal disciples?

If the “smart” Seychellois negotiators had done their homework, they could have come up with alternate options for the EU, which could have landed Seychelles millions of Euros in hard currency. How about charging fifty Euro cents (half a euro) per KILO of tuna caught in Seychelles’ waters or transshipped through Seychelles? A Metric Ton equals 1,000 kilos. Thus, 63,000 MT x Euro 0.50 = Euro 31,500,000 (yes, that’s THIRTY-ONE Million Five Hundred Thousand Euros)! Or, imagine if we could process that same 63,000 MT of fish and sell it as fresh tuna loins. At around 8 to 10 Euros per kilo (the average year round market price in Europe for tuna loins), that would have generated approximately Euro 40,000,000 (Euro Forty Million) - when one takes the yield into consideration.

Maybe It Is Time To Cast The Bad Fish Away

So the simple message of the parable is clear: somebody in this Government thinks that Seychellois are simpletons and are easily persuaded with big numbers. Or, just maybe, the European Union negotiators are sitting in Brussels patting themselves on the back for having once again pulled the wool over the eyes of a poor third world African country.

The reality is that Seychelles’ fishing sector continues to struggle and is nowhere near to realising its full economic potential. Worse, while nobody is supposedly watching and politics are being played; Seychelles territorial waters are being systematically raped of its riches by the European Union vessels. To take an excerpt out of Jesus’ famous sermon – maybe the time is right to sit down and “cast the bad [fish] away.”

J. Pisces – AKA “A “dumb” Seychellois Fisherman

We reproduce here the article as it appeared in the Seychelles Nation of 02.04.2007, referred to in the article above .

EU to pay more for Seychelles fish - 02.04.07

Seychelles will benefit from an increase in the reference tonnage of 63,000 MT (metric tonnes) of fish exported to the European Union and a new partnership contribution which is based on 20% of the total license payments based on the reference tonnage.

This will be provided for under a revised protocol which will enter into force on January 18, 2008 that will see ship owners’ contribution per MT increase from 25 to 35 euros per tonne whilst the EC contribution per MT will decrease from 75 to 65 euros.

The total benefits of the revised protocol to government will be a minimum of 7.5 million euros without taking into account the tuna that may be caught over and above the reference tonnage.

The increased funds will be used for the implementation of the fisheries policy and fisheries strategy under the Seychelles Strategy 2017.

The priorities identified so far include the recovery of the semi-industrial long-line fishery, the setting up of a fisheries observer programme, the development of the artisanal fisheries infrastructure and processing sector.

The revised Fisheries Protocol was successfully negotiated during a meeting recently between a high level delegation from Seychelles, jointly led by Seychelles Ambassador to the EU, Barry Faure and the chairman of the Seychelles Fishing Authority, Finley Racombo, and the directorate of fisheries of the European Community in Brussels.

Negotiated in September 2004, the current Fisheries Protocol which defines the fishing opportunities and financial contribution provided for by the Agreement drawn up between the European Community and the Republic of Seychelles on fishing off Seychelles for the period spanning January 18, 2005 to January 17, 2007, is up for review following its third anniversary.

This includes the review of the financial compensation, reference tonnage and other economic parameters of the protocol. The Fisheries Protocol currently provides Seychelles with a total financial compensation of 4.125 million euros annually which is based on a reference tonnage of 55,000 MT of tuna caught in Seychelles waters. Any catch made above this reference tonnage is paid proportionately. This is in addition to the advance licence payments made by the vessels to fish in the country’s exclusive economic zone, which in 2005 amounted to 573,000 euros. The total amount received under the Protocol in 2005 was 5.6 million euros.

(Seychelles Nation, 02/04/07)