Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing linked to China’s distant-water fleets has devastated marine resources in West Africa, notably Senegal, causing a cascade of lost livelihoods, food insecurity, and mass displacement. This alarming pattern is now unfolding in South America, threatening economic stability and regional security.
In Senegal, where fishing is crucial for local food supply and the economy, foreign industrial fleets, predominantly Chinese, exploit vast marine resources through opaque agreements with local companies. This practice severely restricts access for traditional fishing communities. As a result, 57 percent of Senegal’s fish stocks are now depleted, a report by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) in the United Kingdom indicated.
Faced with a lack of alternative livelihoods, thousands of Senegalese have been forced to migrate. In 2024 alone, more than 63,000 Senegalese arrived in Spain via irregular routes, primarily to the Canary Islands, an influx that surged by 200 percent compared to 2022, EJF reported.
This crisis is part of a larger global problem: According to InSight Crime, IUU fishing generates annual revenues of up to $36 billion worldwide. The illicit activity also gravely threatens marine protected areas, including Colombia’s Yuruparí-Malpelo and Ecuador’s Galápagos Marine Reserve, which continue to report illegal incursions by Chinese fishing fleets.
Threats in South America
The unfolding crisis in Senegal serves as a grim warning for South America. China’s distant-water fishing fleet, numbering some 17,000 vessels, is the largest in the world and widely identified as the global worst offender of IUU fishing. In South American waters, this massive fleet is heavily focused on catching giant squid, a key species for marine ecosystems and the local fishing economy. Local news outlets have documented the capture of protected species like hammerhead sharks, as well as seizures of illegal products including shark fins and seahorses.
Beyond IUU practices, these fleets are frequently implicated in severe human rights abuses, including forced labor, slavery, and human trafficking, alongside illegal trafficking of goods. their persistent presence in South American waters exerts immense pressure on coastal ecosystems and overwhelms the enforcement capabilities of coastal nations.
“China has consolidated its presence in the region through agreements with local authorities, as in Senegal, taking advantage of institutional weakness and lack of control in coastal areas,” Milko Schvartzman, an Argentine marine conservation and IUU fishing expert, told Diálogo. “Unable to comply with national regulations, Chinese companies turn to small institutions that are unable to enforce the agreements signed.”
Argentina and regional challenges
“What is happening in Africa is already happening in South America,” Schvartzman warned. In Argentina, Chinese companies are opening subsidiaries and acquiring local companies. In recent years, they’ve begun registering Chinese-built vessels to operate under the Argentine flag, with many fishing in international waters.
It is estimated that between 15 and 20 percent of the Argentine fishing fleet is owned by Chinese capital. “In the case of squid, one of the main species, more than 80 registered vessels are under their control, including at least one state-owned company: the China National Fisheries Corporation (CNFC),” Schvartzman added.
He also cautioned that “many of these companies replicate IUU practices and are interested in expanding this model to countries such as Ecuador.”
Regional response
In June, shortly after Beijing’s accession to the Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA) of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to combat IUU fishing, Argentina detected numerous Chinese vessels operating on the edge of its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), prompting increased naval patrols, Uruguayan news site Visión Marítima reported.
Schvartzman warned that “South America could repeat the African scenario if firm action is not taken.” He also noted growing “resistance in the region to the entry of Chinese fishing and port companies due to a history of illegal fishing and violations of international norms.”
He stressed that China’s history of IUU practices, trafficking in protected species, and labor abuses, justifies a cautious evaluation of any cooperation proposal. “China violates international agreements on fishing, navigation, and human rights,” he said.
In Ecuador, an operation in Manta in April led to the arrest of two people and the seizure of at least 15 tons of shark fins and seahorses destined for Chinese markets, highlighting the scale of illegal fishing in the region, daily El Mercurio Manta reported.
Peru responded to the IUU fishing threat with a decree in September 2024 to protect giant squid, restricting the entry of foreign vessels without authorized satellite systems. Following its implementation, the presence of Chinese vessels decreased significantly, although many shifted operations to Chilean ports.
Challenges in Chile
In April 2025, Chilean authorities identified at least five Chinese vessels, including the notorious Fu Yuan Yu 7872, waiting to enter a shipyard in Talcahuano. The United States sanctioned the Fu Yuan Yu 7872 in 2017 for illegal shark transshipment and alleged forced labor.
Days later, the Hua Ying 819, sanctioned in 2019 by Peru and Chile for IUU fishing and misinformation, changed course from Ecuador and positioned itself off the port city of Iquique, awaiting authorization to enter.
Schvartzman warned that “Chilean and South American fishermen are at a disadvantage compared to the Chinese fleet, which operates with subsidies and without complying with regulations. While local vessels face strict rules, the foreign fleet does not always declare its catches or respect the rules.”
He added that the increase in Chinese vessels near the Chilean EEZ makes control difficult, noting it’s “easier to monitor entry than to prevent IUU fishing within jurisdictional waters,” and didn’t rule out the existence of IUU fishing within the EEZ.
Additionally, several Chinese-owned and crewed vessels under flags of convenience, such as Vanuatu and Cameroon, operate in the South Atlantic and Pacific, evading controls by turning off their AIS systems and engaging in illicit activities.
Regional surveillance and strategic cooperation
Recognizing the escalating threat, the United States has significantly stepped up its support to Latin American nations in the fight against IUU fishing. This assistance includes collaborating with Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, and extending to Panama and Argentina through monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) capacity assessments, as well as joint operations such as Operation Southern Cross.
In Panama, U.S. support has strengthened port and customs mechanisms, fostering intelligence sharing with the National Air and Naval Service (SENAN) and the Maritime Authority, aligning with the U.S. Interagency Working Group on IUU fishing, a collaborative effort to strengthen maritime security globally. Panama, Ecuador, and Senegal were identified as priority countries within its five-year plan to address IUU fishing and associated labor abuses.
Colombia, Ecuador, and Panama also enabled the SeaVision system to improve satellite tracking of suspicious vessels. U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), in partnership with Florida International University and nongovernmental organization Global Fishing Watch, actively advance awareness, detection, and deterrence of IUU fishing in the eastern Pacific.
Chile and Argentina are key participants in this regional strategy, implementing PSMA and conducting bilateral naval exercises to bolster their capabilities against the persistent presence of Chinese fleets in their EEZs.
Preventing ecological collapse
Unlike Africa, where marine species are already collapsing, experts believe that in South America, there is still an opportunity to avert a similar ecological disaster. Schvartzman emphasized the urgency of protecting ecosystems, ratifying international agreements, and advancing regional monitoring mechanisms in international waters of the South Atlantic, where lack of clear regulation continues to favor uncontrolled fishing and threatens sustainability.
“Although a migration crisis similar to that in Africa has not yet been observed, the economic impact on coastal areas, especially in Ecuador, Peru, and Chile, could be severe if governance weakens and controls are not strengthened against the advance of the Chinese fleet,” Schvartzman concluded. “The risk is heightened by the possible collapse of key species.”
