KRIBI, Cameroon — Mboa Mbanga is a landing stage in the coastal city of Kribi in Cameroon’s South region. For the past 17 years, Biliaga has supported his family and sent his kids to school with the money he makes from hauling fish to this landing stage. Raised in a fishing community, Biliaga is concerned about the impact of unchecked industrial fishing.
He describes his meeting with trawlers that engage in commercial fishing while leaning on a boat. His eyes sparkle with emotion as he recalls how a trawler wrecked his net and fish at sea. Above all, he asserts that “These trawlers are like criminals. We wouldn’t suffer if the state could keep the trawlers under control. The government has granted them unrestricted access at sea, and this will cause the ocean’s fish population to collapse.”
