Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing is a social, economic and environmental problem. It undermines management and drives the depletion of fish stocks, threatens food security, and drains valuable resources from the economy. In recent decades, efforts have been made to build an international regime that can curb IUU fishing.

However, implementing this regime and stemming the tides of IUU fishing remains challenging. At the center of this challenge is the necessity to create capacity in states for the monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) of fisheries.1 Monitoring fisheries means measuring fishing effort characteristics and resource yields continuously.

The control of fisheries concerns the establishment of regulations for exploiting resources. Surveillance refers to the measures to secure compliance with regulatory controls.

Effective MCS is a costly endeavor that entails gathering accurate information on fishing activities in vast sea areas, which can be a challenge for many states, particularly those with limited management capacity. There are also challenges related to securing evidence of IUU that holds up in the judicial system. In recent years, several technologies have emerged as solutions for states to increase their ability to monitor and surveil fisheries, and many new ones are being developed. International organizations, donor states, and NGOs have been engaged in building the capacity to use MCS technologies in the Global South to close the implementation gap in the IUU regime. This report’s main goal is to assess the effectiveness of these tools in concrete contexts where they are the most needed.

West Africa, an important maritime fishing region and target for IUU fishing, is also where projects introducing technological tools for MCS have been implemented recently. This report analyzes projects in two West African countries with a high prevalence of IUU fishing—Ghana and Guinea-Bissau—to assess if and how the technologies introduced through international cooperation projects have helped these states implement MCS strategies. The report relies on extensive literature reviews, interviews, and the review of policy documents.