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Programme

Two days of strategic exchanges

The African summit on the blue economy and fisheries - Joint management of a limited resource

From findings to commitments: four constraints, four round tables (climate and resources, biodiversity and illegal fishing, rules and governance, infrastructure and energy), B2B/B2G bilateral meetings and a white paper wrap-up, followed by an optional field immersion in Casablanca.

Dates26-27 March 2027
Arrival of delegations25 March 2027
VenueFour Seasons Hotel Casablanca
Format2 days · plenaries & field visits
Participants150 expected
Context

Guiding thread

From findings to commitments: four constraints, four round tables.

Climate and resources47.4%

of Central-East Atlantic stocks are fished sustainably (world: 64.5%). Waters are warming and sardine shoals are moving north.

Round table 1
Biodiversity and illegal fishingup to 40%

of West Africa's catch is thought to be illegal, a loss of USD 2.3 billion a year. Spawning grounds and juvenile fish must be protected.

Round table 2
Rules and governance22 States

from Morocco to Namibia share stocks that are often managed country by country. Since 15 September 2025, the WTO has regulated fisheries subsidies.

Round table 3
Infrastructure and energy9.1 kg

of fish per person per year in Africa, the lowest level in the world (world: 21.3 kg). Ports, cold chain and energy remain to be financed.

Round table 4

The thread of the Summit: diagnose · act · cooperate · finance · commit (White Paper)

Sources: FAO, state of marine fishery resources 2025 and SOFIA 2026; Scientific Reports 2024 study on north-west Africa; Agence Ecofin, June 2026; WTO; COMHAFAT.

Download the full programme

Provisional PDF version, subject to change ahead of the event.

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Day by day

Detailed schedule

Day 1 March 26 - High-level summit
10:00
Welcome of participants
Welcome coffee
10:30-12:00
Official opening ceremony
Objective : Set the political and institutional framework of the Summit and introduce its guiding thread: diagnose, act, cooperate, finance.
Speakers : Welcome address: Dr Hakima El Haïté, President of Africa-PACT · Leading organisations: Omar Akouri (Secretary General, FPMA) and H.E. Fatima Camara (COMHAFAT) · Ministerial addresses (Morocco): Maritime Fisheries, Environment, Industry · Addresses of honour: Samed Ağırbaş (High-Level Climate Champion, COP31); FAO / AfDB to be confirmed
Plenary
12:00-12:15
Coffee break
12:15-13:15
Round table 1 - Climate emergency and safeguarding the fisheries sector
Objective : Share a clear scientific diagnosis: stocks are declining, waters are warming, shoals are moving. Measure the effects on fishers, jobs and processing plants, in Morocco, across Africa, Spain and Portugal, where stocks are affected.
Prospective speakers : Scientific diagnosis: FAO (COPACE), INRH, climate-fisheries expert (e.g. IPCC) · Testimony from African operators via FPMA; for Morocco, FCPM and FENIP · Morocco's Ministry of Maritime Fisheries and counterparts from COMHAFAT countries · Artisanal fisheries organisation (e.g. CAOPA)
Moderation : Dr Hakima El Haïté, President of Africa-PACT
47.4%of Central-East Atlantic stocks fished sustainably (world: 64.5%)FAO, 2025
6 out of 11stocks of sardines, sardinellas and other small pelagic fish are overfishedFAO-COPACE, 2025 (preliminary)
In Morocco, 909,000 t of small pelagic fish were caught in 2025, against 1.1 million in 2024.
Round table
13:15-14:30
Lunch
14:30-15:30
Round table 2 - From emergency to action, the fisheries response
Objective : Show the levers that can already be activated: fighting illegal fishing, biological rest periods, protection of juvenile fish (area closures in Morocco in 2026), marine protected areas and less energy-intensive fishing. Adopt the principles of the blue economy and low-carbon technologies.
Prospective speakers : Control authorities, CSRP, CPCO: fight against illegal fishing (IUU) · Marine protected area managers · INRH or scientific expertise in marine ecosystem management · Environmental NGO (e.g. WWF Oceans Program) · Private operator engaged in low-carbon practices (energy, cold chain, ports)
up to 40%of West Africa's catch is thought to be illegal (USD 2.3 billion lost a year)Agence Ecofin, June 2026
4 countriesagree in Dakar on a coordinated biological rest period to save sardinellaDakar, 12 February 2026
Round table
15:30-15:45
Coffee break
15:45-16:45
Round table 3 - Regional cooperation for the sustainable management of shared stocks
Objective : Make regional cooperation an engine of the blue economy: harmonise biological rest and minimum size rules, pool enforcement, and speed up the adoption of low-carbon technologies (energy-efficient fleets, digital traceability, satellite monitoring).
Prospective speakers : COMHAFAT: Executive Secretary or representative · African Union, blue economy department · AUDA-NEPAD: representative · Fisheries ministers of African coastal countries · Regional commissions: CSRP, CPCO, COPACE · Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade · Professional organisations: CAOPA, COMAIP, FNP (Mauritania) · Spain, Portugal, EU (DG MARE): shared migratory stocks (ICCAT)
Moderation : Taoufik El Ktiri, Secretary General of COMHAFAT
22 Statesfrom Morocco to Namibia share stocks that are often managed country by countryCOMHAFAT; FAO-COPACE
29 countriesof artisanal fishers (CAOPA) ask to be involved in fishing agreementsCAOPA, 2025-2026
Round table
16:45-19:00
Bilateral meetings
B2B and B2G sessions
Networking
20:00
Gala dinner
Day 2 March 27 - Financing & closing
09:30
Welcome of participants
Welcome coffee
10:00-11:30
Round table 4 - From pipeline to capital, structuring and financing Africa's blue economy
Objective : Bring project structuring and financing together, in two 45-minute sequences, around needs identified in the field: ports and cold chain, energy transition, fleet renewal, digital traceability.
Sequence 1 (45 min) - Structuring bankable projects : African project developers (fisheries, aquaculture, processing) · Bankability support institution (AfDB or dedicated) · Private sector: fisheries, processing, cold chain, maritime logistics · Applied research: INRH Morocco, Ifremer
Sequence 2 (45 min) - Financing sustainability : African Development Bank (potential host) · World Bank / PROBLUE, AFD / Proparco, EIB · Afreximbank, climate and blue funds · African commercial banks
Round table
11:30-11:45
Coffee break
11:45-12:45
Morning wrap-up and closing
Objective : Turn the discussions of the four round tables into a shared document of conclusions and recommendations: findings, commitments, owners and follow-up timeline.
Elements : Rapporteur summaries on a common grid: finding, commitment, next step · Statements and synthesis remarks · A single white paper: four constraints, commitments and follow-up timeline
Plenary
12:45-14:00
Lunch
14:00-17:00
Field immersion (optional)
Objective : Anchor the Summit in operational reality: see stock science, infrastructure and concrete, replicable models. Optional sequence, to be confirmed.
Elements : Visit to INRH (National Institute of Fisheries Research): stock monitoring · Other sites to be identified: port and cold chain, processing, aquaculture · Meetings with local stakeholders
Field

Provisional programme - times and speakers subject to change · 150 participants expected

Speakers

Prospective speakers

Provisional list of prospective speakers for the summit as a whole, all subject to confirmation of attendance. The breakdown by round table will be published once validated.

Khalid Hatimy, Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries and Food Sovereignty, Morocco - attendance to be confirmed
Charafat Afailal, Minister of Energy, Mines and Sustainable Development, Morocco - attendance to be confirmed
Hakima El Haïté, President, Africa-PACT - attendance to be confirmed
Sidi Ould Tah, President, African Development Bank - attendance to be confirmed
Amy Mara, Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Economy, Senegal - attendance to be confirmed
Emelia Arthur, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Ghana - attendance to be confirmed
Antoine Lékpa Gbégbéni, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Animal Resources and Food Sovereignty, Togo - attendance to be confirmed
Honoré Sayi, Minister of Fisheries, River Economy and Waterways, Republic of Congo - attendance to be confirmed
Fatima Camara, Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Economy, Guinea · President of COMHAFAT - attendance to be confirmed
Sidi Tiémoko Touré, Minister of Animal and Fisheries Resources, Ivory Coast - attendance to be confirmed
Samed Ağırbaş, High-Level Champion for Climate Action - COP31 - attendance to be confirmed
Omar Akouri, Secretary General, FPMA - attendance to be confirmed
Abdellah Mokssit, Secretary-General of the IPCC - attendance to be confirmed
Alexandre Anh Tài Huynh, FAO Representative in Morocco - attendance to be confirmed
Nancy Chenard, Executive Secretary, UNICONGO - attendance to be confirmed
François Gerlotto, Representative of the Institute of Research for Development (IRD) in Morocco - attendance to be confirmed
Taoufik El Ktiri, Executive Secretary of COMHAFAT - attendance to be confirmed
West African Development Bank (BOAD), Presidency - attendance to be confirmed
Catherine Bonnaud, Director, French Development Agency (AFD) - attendance to be confirmed
Idrissa Nassa, Chairman and CEO, Coris Bank International - attendance to be confirmed
Carlos Fernández Rodríguez, Director of African Relations, CaixaBank Gran Canaria, Spain - attendance to be confirmed
Mamadou Sinsy Coulibaly, President, Employers' Association of Mali - attendance to be confirmed
Mehdi Tazi-Riffi, General Manager, Tanger Med - attendance to be confirmed
Coami Sedolo Laurent Tamegnon, President of the National Council of Employers of Togo, Vice-President of FOPAO - attendance to be confirmed
Nezha Fares, Director of Aquaculture, MAPMDREF - attendance to be confirmed
Samba Ka, Director General, National Aquaculture Agency, Senegal - attendance to be confirmed
Mohammed Akoojee, CEO of DP World, Africa region - attendance to be confirmed
Khalid Safir, Director General, Caisse de Dépôt et de Gestion (CDG) - attendance to be confirmed
Mustapha Farès, Director General, National Ports Agency (ANP), Morocco - attendance to be confirmed
Abdou Diop, President of the South-South Africa Commission, CGEM - attendance to be confirmed
Oriana Romano, Unit Head - Water Governance, Blue Economy and Circular Economy, OECD - attendance to be confirmed
Fatima Ait Benhaddou, Representative of coastal communities, Network of women fishers, Agadir - attendance to be confirmed
Mariame Kouyaté, Director of the NGO Jeunes du Littoral, Dakar - attendance to be confirmed
Vanessa Ushie, Gender Coordinator, African Development Bank - attendance to be confirmed
Sidi Ahmed Ould Braham, President of the Nouadhibou Cooperative, Mauritania - attendance to be confirmed
Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, Regional Director for Africa, UN Women - attendance to be confirmed
National Institute of Fisheries Research - representative to be confirmed