Threats to Senegal’s fishing sector: A case study from the Ziguinchor region

This report examines the socio-economic importance and systemic threats to the fishing sector in Senegal, focusing on a case study of the Ziguinchor region. It details the impact of illegal fishing, infrastructure deficits, and environmental degradation, while evaluating participatory management models and protected marine areas.

• Fishing is a vital component of Senegal's economy and food security, providing 47% of the population's required protein intake and employing approximately 600,000 people, which represents 17% of the national labour force.
• The Ziguinchor region is a major fishing hub, contributing 12% of national production with over 53,000 tonnes of fish products landed in 2014. The sector in this region shifted from subsistence to commercial activity partly due to the Casamance rebellion starting in 1982, which forced indigenous populations to abandon farming for fishing to survive.
• Illegal fishing practices are widespread in Ziguinchor, specifically the use of prohibited monofilament nylon nets. These nets are preferred by fishermen for larger catches despite being environmentally damaging, taking 30 to 40 years to degrade and trapping immature fish.
• The sector suffers from significant infrastructure and resource gaps. There is a lack of dedicated fishing ports in key areas like Kafountine, Cap Skirring, and Elinkine, and regional fisheries authorities are understaffed, sometimes with only two officers per site and no transport.
• Environmental threats include coastal erosion, exemplified by Diogué Island where houses and coconut trees have been destroyed, and deforestation caused by the use of wood for smoking fish, boiling volutes, and constructing canoes.
• Senegal employs a participatory management model where economic interest groups (EIGs) and local artisanal fisheries councils (LAFCs) manage offloading sites. While generally positive, the creation of local and community heritage areas (LCHAs) has caused conflict, as some non-indigenous fishermen view them as discriminatory tools to exclude outsiders.
• The Abéné protected marine area (PMA), established in 2004, aims to conserve biodiversity and mitigate climate change through seasonal fishing bans and the use of artificial reefs. However, security concerns in the Bignona department force PMA staff to work unarmed and in plain clothes to avoid frightening civilians affected by armed conflict.

APA

Blédé, B., Compaoré, P., & Diouf, A. (2015). Threats to Senegal’s fishing sector: A case study from the Ziguinchor region. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/WestAfricaReport15.pdf

Chicago

Blédé, Barthélemy, Pascaline Compaoré, and André Diouf. Threats to Senegal’s fishing sector: A case study from the Ziguinchor region. Institute for Security Studies, 2015. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/WestAfricaReport15.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Blédé |first1=Barthélemy |last2=Compaoré |first2=Pascaline |last3=Diouf |first3=André |title=Threats to Senegal’s fishing sector: A case study from the Ziguinchor region |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=November 2015 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/WestAfricaReport15.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bld2015threats, author = {Blédé, Barthélemy and Compaoré, Pascaline and Diouf, André}, title = {{Threats to Senegal’s fishing sector: A case study from the Ziguinchor region}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2015}, month = nov, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/WestAfricaReport15.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }