Nigeria, Norway partner on satellite surveillance to combat illegal fishing

Nigeria is set to adopt satellite-based vessel tracking to strengthen surveillance of its waters and combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing following plans to collaborate with Norway under its Blue Justice initiative.

Adegboyega Oyetola, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, disclosed the Federal Government’s readiness to join the programme on Monday when he received Svein Baera, Norway’s ambassador to Nigeria, during a courtesy visit in Abuja.

According to a statement signed by Bolaji Akinola, Special Adviser to the Minister on Media, the proposed collaboration would give Nigeria access to satellite-based Automatic Identification System (AIS) vessel-tracking data to identify suspicious maritime movements and strengthen enforcement against illegal fishing.

The initiative offers participating countries free access to real-time and historical vessel-tracking data through the Blue Justice Ocean Surveillance Programme. Norway has invited Nigeria to join the Blue Community, a network of countries participating in the initiative.

Baera said the programme would help Nigerian authorities detect vessels that switch off or evade tracking systems, commonly referred to as “dark vessels”, while providing intelligence to investigate suspected illegal fishing and other maritime crimes.

He said the data would strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to monitor maritime activities, protect fisheries resources and identify patterns associated with illegal operators.

Responding, Oyetola commended the Norwegian government for the initiative and its longstanding cooperation with Nigeria, assuring that the country was ready to participate in the programme.

“We cannot continue to allow foreign operators to exploit our marine resources illegally while our local fishers and businesses suffer the consequences. The Federal Government is determined to bring this practice to an end,” he said.

The minister expressed concern that foreign operators illegally harvest fish from Nigerian waters before the products are returned to the country and sold to Nigerians at exorbitant prices.

He said illegal fishing deprives the country of legitimate economic benefits, undermines the livelihoods of local fishing communities and threatens the sustainable management of aquatic resources.

“The protection of our waters is an environmental responsibility and an economic imperative. We must protect our fish stocks, safeguard the livelihoods of our fishermen and ensure that our marine resources contribute meaningfully to national development,” Oyetola said.

The minister added that satellite surveillance and improved intelligence sharing would enhance the government’s ability to identify suspicious activities and enforce fisheries regulations.

Beyond maritime security, the government is pursuing measures to increase domestic fish production, reduce dependence on imports, create jobs and conserve foreign exchange.

The proposed collaboration with Norway is expected to support these objectives by improving monitoring of Nigerian waters and strengthening efforts to prevent unauthorised exploitation of the country’s marine resources.

The Blue Justice initiative is designed to help participating countries use vessel-tracking information to detect suspicious activities and support investigations into fisheries-related crimes.

However, the statement did not specify when Nigeria would formally join the programme or provide details of the operational arrangements for deploying the surveillance data across relevant government agencies.