Fondation Hirondelle

The Acting Deputy Director of Fisheries in the Ministry of Fisheries, Hotanga Arnold Robin has revealed that Sierra Leone was losing a huge sum of money to foreign vessels that use the country’s flag of convenience.

Mr. Robin told CTN that the country was benefiting little from the revenue accrued for allowing foreign fishing and mercantile vessels to fly the country’s flag in international waters.

He said the government through the Fisheries ministry had now decided to de-link foreign vessels from Sierra Leone’s international ship register.

This, he said, would effectively ban the use of the country’s flag of convenience by vessels, which he said were illegally using the flag to disguise their identity and illegal activities.

He said the move would also address the accusation against the country that it was condoning illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing practices in the sub-region.

According to the Fisheries Ministry, Sierra Leone was the first country in the world to take such an action of de-linking foreign-owned vessels from its international fishing registry.