The European Parliament adopted by 555 votes to 25, with 40 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the Union, of the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Union and the Republic of Mauritius on an extension of the Protocol setting out the fishing opportunities and the financial contribution provided for by the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Mauritius.
The Fisheries Partnership Agreement (FPA) signed by the European Union and Mauritius on 21 December 2013 entered into force on 28 January 2014, for a period of 6 years, tacitly renewable for additional periods of 3 years. The last fisheries Protocol covered the period until 7 December 2021.
On 28 September 2021, the Council adopted a decision authorising the European Commission to open negotiations for a new Protocol to the FPA EU-Mauritius with the option of a limited prolongation of the current Protocol to avoid interruption of the fishing activities. When tourism collapsed, the country's economy relied on the activities of the tuna vessels, which continued to maintain their fishing and supply the local canneries despite the global crisis.
Furthermore, due to the restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic and the complex nature of the negotiations, both parties agreed to extend the Protocol 2017-2021 for a maximum period of six months, in line with the said Council decision. The extension was established by way of an Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters, which was initialled on 6 December 2021.
The Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters provides for indicative fishing opportunities of 2 000 tonnes and a corresponding adjustment of the EU financial contribution for access. The EU’s financial contribution for six months is EUR 287 500.
The European Parliament gave its consent to the conclusion of the Agreement which aims to extend the current Protocol by six months under the same terms and conditions (pro rata temporis).