It seems ages ago now, but it was in April last year that Samantha Petersen and I sat down one evening to draft the proprosal to set up an Albatross Task Force (ATF) in Namibia.
The death rate of seabirds in Namibian waters is unacceptable. Last year, a report, The Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem, set out the problem. It showed that almost 31,000 birds were being killed annually as a result of longline fishing.
On top of this, it estimates the Namibian pelagic longline fishery (that targets tuna, swordfish and sharks) catches 700 turtles each year, including the critically-endangered leatherback turtle.
And the list goes on... the hake longline fishery is estimated to catch one million sharks and skates and the pelagic longliners kill approximately 250,000 sharks. In this area, there are no mitigation measures to prevent bird or turtle deaths.
Our proposals stated that further research, data collection and mitigation measures should be part of the permit conditions of the fisheries.
We are lucky to have the support of the Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Dr Abraham Iyambo. So, with his approval, a funding agreement for the establishment of an Albatross Task Force in Namibia was drawn up by the RSPB.
I'm delighted to report back that on 15 January this year, the agreement between the RSPB and the Namibian Nature Foundation (NNF) to work in partnership with the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources was signed to implement the work of this new ATF.
The first thing to do is to get one or possibly two new members. I'm pleased to say the at-sea training will be done by the ATF in Cape Town. We look forward to working with Dr Chris Brown of NNF and other colleagues in the important work that lies ahead in Namibia, and to being part of an awesome international team.