EU/Seychelles Agreement: access for Seychelles fishing vessels to the waters of Mayotte

PURPOSE: to conclude, on behalf of the European Union, the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Seychelles on access for Seychelles fishing vessels to the waters of Mayotte.

PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.

ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: Council may adopt the act only if Parliament has given its consent to the act. 

BACKGROUND: the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Seychelles on access for Seychelles fishing vessels to Mayotte waters was signed subject to its conclusion at a later date. The Agreement has been applied provisionally from the date of its signature.

The Agreement should be approved.

CONTENT: the purpose of the draft Council Decision is to approve, on behalf of the Union, the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Seychelles on access for Seychelles fishing vessels to Mayotte waters.

The objective of the Agreement is to enable further strengthening of a strategic partnership with Seychelles and to align the technical and financial conditions of the Fisheries Access Agreement with the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement with Seychelles and its Implementing Protocol signed in 2020, and to contribute to responsible fishing in EU waters and to developing fishery policy in Mayotte.

The Agreement establishes the principles, rules and procedures governing:

- economic, financial, technical and scientific cooperation in the fisheries sector with a view to promoting sustainable fishing in Union waters to guarantee the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources and develop the fisheries sector in Mayotte;

- the conditions governing access by Seychelles fishing vessels to Union waters;

- the arrangements for the management, control and surveillance of fishing activities in Union waters with a view to ensuring compliance with the above rules and conditions; the effectiveness of measures for the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fish stocks and the management of fishing activities and the prevention of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

The Agreement establishes a Joint Committee responsible for monitoring the application of the Agreement. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Joint Committee may approve certain amendments thereto.

The Union’s position on amendments that are proposed to the Agreement should be established by the Council. The Commission should approve the proposed amendments on behalf of the Union, unless a number of Member States constituting a blocking minority, object to them.