Published: September 25, 2026
MONROVIA — The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (NaFAA) says it is moving to strengthen Liberia’s monitoring of fishing vessels by using artificial intelligence and other technologies to detect vessels that try to evade conventional surveillance systems.
NaFAA Director General Cyrus Saygbe Sr. said the authority is working to upgrade its Fisheries Monitoring Center with technologies that can identify vessels that may try to circumvent monitoring, including by switching off their Automatic Identification System (AIS).
Saygbe made the disclosure while outlining Liberia’s ongoing efforts to strengthen transparency, enforcement and accountability in the fisheries sector.
He said the planned upgrade is part of broader measures to improve Liberia’s ability to maintain continuous surveillance of fishing activities within its waters.
“At the same time, we are taking concrete steps to strengthen our fisheries monitoring center,” Saygbe said, adding that NaFAA is working to upgrade the center by introducing artificial intelligence and other technologies.
The planned system, he said, is intended to help authorities detect vessels that may attempt to evade conventional monitoring systems, including vessels that deactivate their AIS.
Saygbe also disclosed that NaFAA is introducing three operational ships at the Fisheries Monitoring Center to strengthen the authority’s surveillance capacity.
The announcement comes amid what Saygbe described as Liberia’s efforts to address outstanding concerns linked to the European Union’s fisheries “yellow card,” issued to Liberia in 2017.
According to Saygbe, 15 outstanding issues identified in March 2025 have now been reduced to four following engagements with relevant stakeholders.
The remaining concerns include evidence of the continuous management of unauthorized vessels at the domestic and international levels, full implementation of the port measures agreement, strategy and related memorandum of understanding, effective monitoring of all Liberia-flagged vessels that may engage in fisheries-related activities, and implementation and enforcement of an effective sanctioning regime.
Saygbe said NaFAA has deepened its collaboration with the Liberia Maritime Authority and the Liberia Coast Guard as part of efforts to address the outstanding issues.
He also disclosed a recent case involving a Spanish-flagged vessel, the Zubara, which entered Liberia’s exclusive economic zone in August 2026.
According to Saygbe, the vessel was detected under circumstances involving the deactivation of its AIS.
Liberia has since engaged the Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea, the Spanish government, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, and other stakeholders to establish the facts surrounding the vessel’s presence in Liberia’s EEZ.
“Liberia will follow this matter to the letter,” Saygbe said, linking the case to the authority’s broader efforts to strengthen Liberia’s fisheries sanctioning regime.
The NaFAA chief said the authority’s approach is part of a wider effort to ensure that Liberia’s fisheries resources are managed through information, transparency, science, technology, accountability, stakeholder participation and the rule of law.
He said the authority cannot effectively manage Liberia’s fisheries from Monrovia alone, noting that the country’s fisheries resources extend across its nine coastal counties as well as inland rivers, lakes and aquaculture production areas.
Saygbe said strengthening surveillance must therefore be accompanied by greater access to information and mechanisms that allow communities and fishers to report violations.
NaFAA expects to launch a toll-free call center by October 2026 through shortcode 6822-32, allowing fishers and members of the public to report suspected illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, dynamite fishing, illicit drug activities, gender-based violence and other fisheries-related violations.
The authority is also pursuing broader reforms to improve transparency, including a fisheries information management system that Saygbe said has reduced the processing time for fish import permits from approximately three weeks to three days.
He said the authority has also introduced quarterly open houses and remodeled its website to improve public access to fisheries information.
Saygbe said these measures are intended to ensure that fisheries governance extends beyond international reporting obligations and reaches fishers, fish farmers, fishmongers, private-sector operators and coastal communities.
The planned technological upgrade, combined with increased maritime surveillance, is expected to strengthen Liberia’s ability to identify vessels that attempt to operate outside established monitoring mechanisms as the country works to address the remaining EU fisheries concerns.
Discussion about this post