
JOHANNESBURG – South Africa and Namibia have signed a fisheries Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), outlining how they will work together in various matters within the fisheries space as the two countries share a border.
The MoU was signed by Minister Senzeni Zokwana, and his Namibian counterpart, Minister Bernard Essau, in the Namibian capital, according to a Thursday press release by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
South Africa, Namibia and Angola share one of the most productive ecosystems, the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME). The collaboration of the three countries is historic and has involved international partners funding a number of significant projects in the BCLME region. This collaboration was later formalised through the Benguela Current Commission and has now been ratified into a convention.
Because of the common border between South Africa and Namibia co-management between the two is important.
Areas of cooperation, according to the MoU, will include research and development through a specialised joint working group for the evaluation, management and socio-economic study of shared marine resources.