Amid continued debate over marine spaces, the question of who leads and shapes action has never been more critical to answer. The European Union’s (EU) Ocean Act presents a crucial opportunity to change the future of Europe’s seas equitably and sustainably, and lessons can be learnt from small-scale fishers thousands of kilometers away in West Africa.
Ghana faces immense economic pressures, and despite access to far less financial and scientific resources than the EU, the government has committed to strong protection of its coastal waters. It extended its Preferential Access Area (PAA) from six to 12 nautical miles, granting exclusive fishing access to local, small-scale fishers while barring destructive vessels, namely trawlers, from coastal waters.
Real-world evidence shows that well-enforced PAAs, where bottom trawling is prohibited, strengthen the resilience of small-scale fleets, accelerate fish stock recovery and protect coastal livelihoods.
Meanwhile, despite its global leadership in fighting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and its repeated commitments to global ocean protection, the EU continues to allow industrial bottom trawlers near-unfettered access to coastal waters. This comes at the direct expense of coastal communities and small-scale fishers who represent the vast majority of Europe’s fishing fleet.
Recent research highlights how a small group of large commercial owners, acting through fishing industry associations, has opposed stronger seabed protection in Brussels by questioning the science and warning of socio-economic disruption. Yet real-world evidence shows that well-enforced PAAs, where bottom trawling is prohibited, strengthen the resilience of small-scale fleets, accelerate fish stock recovery and protect coastal livelihoods.
Ghana may not offer Europe a ready-made blueprint for preferential access, but the country’s experience demonstrates that governments can make significant policy changes when the voices of affected communities, evidence and objective political leadership come together.
A decade on the frontlines — CaFGOAG’s story
In Ghana, small-scale fisheries are not simply an occupation; they are the foundation of coastal communities. In contrast to destructive trawl fleets, they are among the most energy-efficient animal-sourced food production systems, with low environmental impacts and outsized economic and social value. Yet fishers are experiencing declining catches, increasing costs and competition from industrial trawlers.
Industrial fishing, such as bottom trawling, has been a major driver of this decline, particularly through the “saiko” fish trade, where trawlers harvest juvenile and small pelagic species and illegally transship them at sea into adapted canoes for onward sale at local markets.
Our experience has demonstrated that political and economic complexity must never be an excuse for inaction.
The consequences extend beyond individual fishers: fish processors, traders and economies are devastated, with women feeling the impact most severely when landings crash. For the Canoe and Fishing Gear Owners Association of Ghana (CaFGOAG), the fundamental issue is not simply competition between fishing methods, but whether marine resources are managed to protect the ecological foundations of life at sea and protect livelihoods for coastal communities.
For over a decade, CaFGOAG has consistently called for stronger protection of Ghana’s inshore waters through an expanded PAA. Our experience has demonstrated that political and economic complexity must never be an excuse for inaction. Instead, it underscores the need for meaningful dialogue, robust evidence and direct participation of the people whose livelihoods are closely connected to the marine resources.
Small-scale fishers are central to Ghana’s progress. The case for extending the PAA was rooted in lived experience: fishers know their fishing grounds, seasonal patterns, changes in fish availability and the practical consequences of industrial fishing activity, in ways that complement scientific information.
It is paramount that fishers and their communities are directly involved in policy discussions, with community knowledge considered alongside scientific evidence. This approach, supported by the Transform Bottom Trawling Coalition and its members, such as Oceana and Blue Ventures, has helped advance efforts to promote PAAs in Ghana, Brazil, the Philippines and elsewhere.
Ghana’s progress toward extending the PAA from six to 12 nautical miles is a milestone for small-scale fishers worldwide. It now joins a growing list of countries that have adopted, or are in the process of adopting, similar measures.
The view from Portugal — MARSEMPRE’s story
Portugal is facing many of the same pressures. In Ferragudo, in the Algarve, Marsempre was established in 2021 to defend the village’s maritime cultural heritage and champion reform toward a more sustainable sea.
Marsempre began pushing for stronger protection of the village’s fishing grounds after a major conflict, when an aquaculture project risked livelihoods by considerably reducing the fishing grounds. Since then, Marsempre has successfully worked with other stakeholders to create a national marine park in Pedra do Valado, which is also in the Algarve. It also continues to fight for the safeguard measures agreed with all local fishing associations, including extending the PAA for fishing vessels with low-impact fishing gear (traditional fleet) from six to eight nautical miles from the coast and to ban bottom trawling.
Restricting industrial fleets from coastal waters is not just an environmental measure; it is a vital lifeline for small-scale fishers, local food security and coastal economies.
For communities like Ferragudo, where small six-to-eight-meter boats using low-impact gear such as gillnets and octopus traps depend on access to nearby fishing grounds, extending this protected area would help safeguard the space and livelihoods of the local artisanal fleet.
Caution, protectionism of the status quo and the heavy influence of industrial lobbies frequently paralyze political action. But change is urgently needed.
Lessons for the EU
By embedding PAAs into member states’ maritime spatial plans, EU leaders can grant priority access to small-scale, low-impact fishers within territorial seas while strictly prohibiting destructive practices like industrial bottom trawling. Restricting industrial fleets from coastal waters is not just an environmental measure; it is a vital lifeline for small-scale fishers, local food security and coastal economies, including sustainable tourism and recreation. It is a chance to reframe coastal waters as a public good rather than a zone for competing industrial exploitation.
Momentum is already building: Ireland is set to protect its six-nautical-mile coastal zone, while fishing organisations in France, Cyprus and other EU states are advancing similar proposals. The Ocean Act can accelerate this progress and support Europe’s small-scale fisheries and coastal seas in recovering and thriving together.
