Offshore extraction activities including oil and gas infrastructure installations are having dangerous and destructive impact on the livelihoods of coastal communities, the 2024 FishNet Alliance confab has disclosed.
In a declaration sequel to its General Assembly and Conference held in August in Durban, South Africa, FishNet Alliance a network of fishers across the coast of Africa noted that The systemic and subtle extension of the extractivists colonial roots through the introduction of concepts like the Blue Economy are going to worsen the situation of fisher folks who they say “are already paying the price for grabbing of their resources.”
“Our sea and other water bodies are also under constant attack and we note the new dynamics brought by the push for renewable offshore energy,” the stated in a declaration endorsed by 19 international organisations.
According to them, coastal and fishing communities are being washed away as a result of coastal erosion and sea encroachment engendered by the climate change, adding that “these fisher folks’ communities are fast turning into refugees in their own countries as their territories are being washed away.”
Consequently, the Alliance has stated, among other demands, that the continent’s ocean communities and sociocultural wellbeing are not for sale, while requesting that artisanal fishers be recognized, consulted, supported, protected and adequately represented in every ocean and maritime policy discourse.
They also urged that all deltas and protected areas in Africa be declared no-mining, no-exploitation zones.
By Esther Samson