00:00Etim Akan has been out fishing since the middle of the night, but his net is still empty after
00:09seven hours at sea.
00:11Artisanal fishermen in the region say their catches are getting smaller and smaller.
00:19It's very difficult to catch even a single fish nowadays.
00:23Just look at the boat.
00:24It's empty.
00:27There's nothing here for us.
00:29Look at all I've had for today.
00:31It's very little and it will hardly fetch me any money.
00:38These local fishermen are struggling as foreign vessels have flooded the ocean.
00:43They say there's an unhealthy competition underway just off Cameroon's shores.
00:51It's the Chinese, the Chinese vessels and other vessels that have come around here fishing
00:55massively including for prawns.
00:58They fish constantly without stopping to allow the fish to reproduce.
01:05Back on the seashore, people rush to buy the catch, but most of the boats have come back
01:11almost empty.
01:15A Kongolo Robert has just returned from the ocean.
01:18He's been a fisherman for 35 years, but recently business has been slower than ever.
01:25He blames unregulated fishing for the decline.
01:30The government tells us which sorts of nets to use for fishing, but the foreigners don't
01:35follow the guidelines.
01:37They use the wrong nets, which kills even the smallest fish, and that affects the reproduction
01:43of fish in the ocean.
01:45We complained about this to the government, but the government doesn't take proper action.
01:51When we complain, the foreigners go to meet the authorities and hand them money.
01:56Our complaints are pushed aside.
01:58Those are the problems we're dealing with.
02:01Last year, the European Union Commission imposed a ban on imports of fishery products caught
02:06in Cameroon waters or by vessels registered here, citing the country's lack of cooperation
02:13in the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
02:18It doesn't seem as though much has changed.
02:23Cameroon loses more than $30 million annually from illegal maritime fishing.
02:29The country imports around $160 million worth of fish each year.
02:36Many fish traders report being put out of business due to scarcity of fish.
02:42Chinese trawlers continue to fish in areas reserved for small-scale fishermen.
02:49It happens all the time.
02:53When the Chinese see you at sea, and they want to seize your net and other equipment,
02:57and you decide to confront them, the army protecting them shows up with guns.
03:01The soldiers will start shooting at you, so you've just got to get away from them as quickly
03:06as possible.
03:07Because if a fisherman is killed, no one will be held accountable.
03:11It's a loss for the fisherman's family.
03:13So attacks at sea are very common, and if you speak about it to the authorities, nothing
03:17happens.
03:18The Chinese act as if they own Cameroon's waters.
03:24The most senior government official in charge of fisheries in this region denies all the
03:28claims made by the fishermen.
03:31He says some artisanal fishes and foreign boats have been found in violation of government
03:35regulations.
03:37Control is being done at all levels in order to combat this IUU fishing.
03:46Yes, Cameroon is on the red zone, but gradually I think we are fighting to leave from the
03:52red zone, maybe to the yellow, and not the green zone, because presently, as we speak,
04:03there's control in the sea.
04:05As I told you, we do spot surveillance.
04:09We don't let them know when we are entering the sea.
04:12Etiem is back from the ocean, but with not enough fish.
04:20Like other artisanal fishermen in the region, he doesn't have much hope for the foreseeable
04:25future if things stay like this.
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