The Gambia and five other countries lose a cumulative sum of 2.5 billion dollars annually to illegal fishing activities.

Amnesty International in its report titled The Human Cost of Overfishing, is a research work on fishing in local communities in Sanyang, on the West Coast of the Gambia.

The reports note that Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Mauritania face similar challenges.

The rights organization says not only are the populations’ livelihoods threatened and rights violated by this act but also endangers some aquatic species.

At least 63 Gambians were contacted for this report between 2021 and 2022.

Michelle Eken, a Senior researcher for West and Central Africa at Amnesty International tells WADR more about their findings.