Fisherman Ibrahima Mar, 55, said dwindling catches have upended a way of life sustained for generations in Rufisque, near Dakar. He described a steady depletion of fish stocks that has left traditional fishers struggling to survive. “The fish have been taken from our path,” he said, pointing to worsening conditions in recent years.

Analysts attribute the decline to a combination of illegal practices and large-scale industrial operations. Bassirou Diarra, Senegal country manager for the Environmental Justice Foundation, said vessels engaged in bottom trawling and other activities often operate under Senegalese flags but are linked to foreign ownership, including European and Asian interests.

“These practices not only reduce fish availability for local consumption but also limit economic returns to the country,” Diarra said, citing issues such as unauthorized fishing in protected areas, non-compliant equipment and lax licensing.

A 2025 report by the Environmental Justice Foundation estimated that 57% of exploited fish populations in Senegal are in a state of collapse, underscoring the scale of the crisis.

The decline has had ripple effects across coastal economies. According to census data, more than 82,000 people in Senegal depend on fishing, accounting for about 2% of the workforce. Ancillary sectors such as fish processing, transport and retail have also been affected.

Local fishing leaders say productivity has sharply declined. Mamadou Diouf Sene, head of the Rufisque Fishing Wharf Revenue Commission, said it now takes up to seven months to catch what previously required two months, reflecting the strain on marine resources.

The economic pressure has contributed to increased migration attempts, with some fishermen undertaking dangerous journeys to Europe in traditional wooden boats known as pirogues. Community members say these journeys often end in tragedy.

Environmental factors have compounded the problem. Researchers note that climate change is shifting small pelagic species, such as sardinella and horse mackerel, northward, further reducing local availability.

Authorities acknowledge enforcement challenges. Cheikh Salla Ndiaye of Senegal’s Directorate of Fisheries Protection and Surveillance said monitoring vast maritime areas remains difficult despite support from security forces.

Efforts to improve oversight are underway, with environmental groups such as Greenpeace introducing technologies including satellite tracking and mobile reporting tools to help identify illegal activity at sea.

The crisis has raised concerns about long-term food security and economic stability in Senegal, where fish remains a central component of both diet and cultural identity.

The military junta in Niger is locked in a standoff with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which has taken its hardest stance yet on last week’s ouster of President Mohamed Bazoum – the seventh coup in West and Central Africa since 2020.

In a blow to hopes of restoring the previous status quo, the junta revoked a raft of military cooperation agreements with France late on Thursday. There was no immediate response from France.

The move echoes similar moves by juntas in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso in the wake of their coups and could drastically reshape a joint fight against an Islamist insurgency.

France has between 1,000 and 1,500 troops in Niger, helping to fight an insurgency by groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that has destabilised West Africa’s Sahel region.

An ECOWAS delegation is in the Nigerien capital Niamey, hoping to secure “a conclusive and amicable resolution” to the crisis, although the bloc has also imposed sweeping sanctions and warned it could authorise the use of force if Bazoum is not reinstated by Sunday.

Niger’s self-declared leader Abdourahamane Tiani has rejected the sanctions and said the junta will not back down against any threats.

Later on Friday, the region’s defence chiefs will officially end a multi-day meeting in the Nigerian capital Abuja about a possible military response that they have said would be a last resort.

The junta on Thursday said any aggression or attempted aggression by ECOWAS would be met with an immediate riposte on any ECOWAS member-state except those friendly to Niger.

Tiani has won the backing of the juntas in Mali and Burkina Faso and cited persistent insecurity as his main justification for seizing power, even though data on attacks shows that security there has actually been improving.

Ken Elliott was safe and well and was reunited with his wife and their children on Thursday night, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said.

“I’m very pleased to advise that Dr. Ken Elliott, who’s been held hostage in Western Africa for some seven years, has been reunited in Australia with his family,” Wong told reporters in Sydney.

Elliott and his wife were kidnapped in Burkina Faso, where they had run a medical clinic for four decades. Jocelyn Elliott was released three weeks later.

“We wish to express our thanks to God and all who have continued to pray for us,” Elliott’s family said in a statement released by Wong’s department.

“We express our relief that Dr. Elliott is free and thank the Australian government and all who have been involved over time to secure his release,” the family statement said.

Wong said no ransom was paid to secure Elliott’s freedom, but no other details on his release were disclosed. Media reported he was reunited with his family in Perth, the west coast city where he is from.

“At 88 years of age, and after many years away from home, Dr. Elliott now needs time and privacy to rest and rebuild strength,” the family added.

The militant group behind the kidnapping, Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, rose to prominence in large part through kidnap-for-ransom operations targeting foreign aid workers and tourists.

On the day the Australian couple were kidnapped — Jan. 15, 2016 — 30 people were killed in an extremist attack in Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou. Al-Qaida’s North Africa wing claimed responsibility for that attack and other high-profile strikes in West Africa months earlier, including killing 20 people in an attack on a hotel in Mali’s capital Bamako.

The Elliotts were kidnapped near the northern Burkina Faso town of Djibo, near the border with Mali and Niger.

Jocelyn Elliott was freed in neighboring Niger. Niger’s then-President Mahamadou Issoufou had worked with Burkina Faso intelligence services to secure her release, his office said at the time.

Australia had not paid ransom to secure Ken Elliott’s release, Wong said.

“The Australian government has a clear policy that we do not pay ransoms,” Wong said.

“What we have done over the last seven years is ensure that we worked with other governments and local authorities in relation to Dr. Elliott,” she added.