China looks to Africa to meet rising demand for seafood, but can it balance local interests with its own needs?
- The country is investing heavily in port facilities across the continent, but its trawlers are accused of putting local stocks at risk
A new Chinese fishing port on Tanzania’s Indian Ocean coastline that is expected to create thousands of jobs is on track to be completed next year.
The US$111 million port in Kilwa Masoko is being built by state-owned China Harbour Engineering Company under the Belt and Road Initiative, a transcontinental infrastructure project, with the aim of helping China meet its huge domestic demand for seafood.
But the means by which it meets this demand have come under scrutiny with critics warning that Chinese fleets are putting supplies at risk, particularly in West Africa, and sometimes fishing illegally.
Kilwa Masoko, which is home to beautiful beaches and ancient Swahili ruins, heavily relies on fishing, but the Tanzanian government says the city currently lacks the equipment and fishing infrastructure it needs to develop the industry.
The new port, which will support deep-sea commercial fishing, is expected to create 30,000 direct and indirect jobs and improve the fortunes of local fishing and seaweed farming communities.
Tanzania’s livestock and fisheries minister Abdallah Ulega told Chinese state-owned broadcaster CGTN Africa that the port will “bring about the development of the Tanzanian economy” and, unlike the small boats and canoes currently used by local fishing crews, it will be able to accommodate up to 10 larger vessels.
