Bissau, July 17, 2025 (Lusa) - The president of the National Association of Industrial Fishing Shipowners (ANAPI) has told Lusa that fishing could earn Guinea-Bissau €1 billion a year with investment and state control of the sector.
Rui Alberto Pereira was speaking to Lusa on the sidelines of the II EC-CPLP (Business Confederation-CPLP) economic forum, which took place in Bissau on Wednesday under the slogan: ‘Food security, technology and sustainability’, bringing together around 100 businesspeople.
The head of ANAPI, who was invited to the forum, said it was incomprehensible that Guinea-Bissau was not paying attention to the fisheries sector, which he considers to be the driving force behind the country's economy, more so than cashews, the main agricultural and export product.
‘Guinea-Bissau's fish could bring €1 billion a year into the state coffers, we just need to sit down and do the math," said Rui Pereira, pointing to the country's trade with the European Union (EU).
He noted that the state receives €17 million annually from the EU under a fishing agreement, but that the EU earns €310 million from fish purchased from Guinea-Bissau.
Rui Pereira said that these figures come from Eurostat, the EU's statistical service, and have been confirmed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The Guinea-Bissau official also argued that the country "leaves in Senegalese ports" around €210 million per year through fish that is landed in Senegal due to the lack of landing facilities in Guinea-Bissau.
"Add it all up and we're talking about €500 million that Guinea-Bissau is losing," said Pereira, who also highlighted the existence of illegal fishing, "sometimes institutionalised" in Guinea-Bissau waters.
The Association of Industrial Fishing Shipowners president said that the way forward is to invest in a national fleet, which he acknowledges is "a heavy investment", but believes it could help change the way the fisheries sector is viewed in Guinea-Bissau.
Rui Pereira noted that "fish itself is already a guarantee" for any investment and pointed to the fact that the EU pays compensation funds in advance for fishing in Guinea-Bissau waters.
The ANAPI president noted that cashews - the main export product, which earns the country €210 million per year - only affect the economy for six months, while the fishing sector has potential for the whole year.
Rui Pereira considers the gap between the commercial value of fish and cashew nuts in Guinea-Bissau to be striking, but praises an IMF report that advises the government to pay more attention to the fishing sector in collecting revenue for the state.
The head of the industrial fishermen's association invited CPLP businesspeople to ‘join’ Guinea-Bissau in "exploring the many possibilities" that he said exist in the fishing sector.
MB/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
