15 Countries Adopt Mombasa Declaration to Fight Illegal Fishing

News in Brief

—Fifteen countries sign the Mombasa Declaration, an accord to ensure Fisheries Transparency and tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

—The countries pledged to improve vessel tracking, data sharing and oversight in the fight against illegal fishing.

Fifteen countries have adopted the Mombasa Declaration on Fisheries Transparency, a new commitment to further secure the global fishing industry and curb illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

The declaration was unveiled in Mombasa, Kenya, during the Our Ocean Conference, where governments and conservation groups pushed for stronger transparency as a way to tackle illegal fishing and related crimes.

Timely International Cooperation Against IUU

The agreement comes at a time when illegal fishing continues to raise concern across the world’s oceans, with experts and campaigners warning that weak oversight allows illicit operators to hide vessel ownership, obscure catches, and evade sanctions.

An estimated one in five fish consumed globally is linked to illegal fishing, a practice often associated with forced labour, human trafficking and environmental destruction.  It is estimated that more than 120,000 fishers are currently trapped in situations of modern slavery at sea. At the heart of this crisis lies one fundamental problem: the fisheries sector suffers from a severe lack of transparency.

According to supporters of the declaration, better transparency can help close the gaps that enable illegal fleets to operate, while also improving protection for marine ecosystems and coastal livelihoods.

Mombasa Declaration Framework

The Mombasa Declaration builds on the Global Charter for Fisheries Transparency, a 10-point framework developed by the Coalition for Fisheries Transparency to guide reforms in fisheries governance. The charter calls for public vessel identification numbers, publication of fishing licences and sanctions, disclosure of beneficial ownership, public access to vessel position data, stronger traceability rules and wider publication of fisheries data.

According to the declaration, participating governments will work to improve the collection and sharing of vessel information, increase access to fisheries data and deepen cooperation between states. The initiative is also intended to support stronger monitoring and enforcement systems, especially in regions where illegal fishing has undermined fish stocks, food security and the incomes of fishing communities.

Countries in the Accord

The countries that signed on include Belgium, Cameroon, Chile, the Republic of the Congo, the Dominican Republic, France on behalf of its overseas territories, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Somalia and South Korea. They pledged to advance transparency around vessel ownership, licensing and fishing activity, while strengthening accountability across the seafood supply chain.

Ghana’s Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Emilia Arthur, said fisheries remain central to her country’s economy, nutrition and livelihoods, and welcomed the declaration as a platform for countries to work together on reform. She said Ghana has already incorporated some transparency measures into its fisheries law and will continue expanding access to reliable information on vessel licences, ownership and other key data. These remarks were reported from the conference and should be read as her account of Ghana’s progress.

Ryan Orgera, director of the Coalition for Fisheries Transparency, said the declaration is meant to improve accountability in a sector that remains vulnerable to hidden ownership, unreported catches and labour abuses. He said transparency is not an end in itself, but a practical route to better environmental and social outcomes in fisheries management.

The declaration also signals an effort to build momentum ahead of the next Our Ocean Conference in 2027, with campaigners hoping more countries will join the initiative. For coastal states that depend heavily on fish for food and jobs, the push for transparency could shape the next phase of global efforts to protect fish stocks and strengthen the blue economy.