15. The draft agreement grants Doggang Daping a seven-year exclusive right to purchase licenses for up to 50 trawlers or purse seiners, while prohibiting other companies of Chinese origin from engaging in fishing activities in Somali waters. With a maximum license fee of USD 250,000 per fishing vessel per year, the potential annual revenue to the Ministry amounts to USD 12.5 million. Given theMinistry’s past practice, this revenue would most likely be diverted into the Ministry’s privateDahabshiil bank account in Djibouti, thereby circumventing the FGS’ Treasury Single Account at theCentral Bank.

16. Paragraph 1 of the draft agreement stipulates that Doggang Daping "may bring its own security with weapons on board [its fishing vessels]” as well as "inside...company offices”. This clause, in essence, authorises the company to violate the Security Council’s arms embargo on Somalia.

17. Paragraph 3 of the draft agreement permits Doggang Daping to fish within six nautical miles from shore, as well as trawl for demersal species such as octopus and scallops. The clause twiceviolates the FGS’ own 2014 Fisheries Law, which requires foreign fishing vessels to remain at least24 nautical miles from shore in order to avoid encroaching on local fishermen; the Law also prohibits the practice of bottom trawling. In addition, the paragraph contravenes an April 2014 agreement between the FGS and Puntland, Galmudug, and the IJA, which held that coastal demersal stocks were to be managed at the regional, not federal, level.13

18. The draft agreement obligates Doggang Daping to pay the Ministry a USD 70,000 "royalty fee” to be used towards "capacity building”. This provision draws parallels to the Monitoring Group’sinvestigation into Soma Oil & Gas Holdings Limited (see annex 2.5), which reveals how the term"capacity building” was employed by the FGS Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources in orderto solicit bribes to ministerial and other FGS officials. However, the Monitoring Group has noevidence that the "capacity building” clause in the Doggang Daping draft agreement was intended to serve the same purpose.

       __________________

13 Communiqué of the Somali MRSS Fisheries Working Group, 2-6 April 2014, Beau Vallon, Seychelles.15-16012

64/322

19. As of this writing, the draft agreement had not been signed by either the Ministry or Doggang Daping. Director General Iman told the Monitoring Group that representatives of Doggang Daping had met with the Ministry in Mogadishu in the hopes of obtaining a deep-sea fishing contract, but had been rebuffed.14 However, a 7 August 2015 email from Director General Iman to Doggang Daping,copying Minister Aimoy and other Ministry officials, indicates the Ministry’s eagerness to cement the agreement: Dear Colleagues, Kindly see attached little pit (sic) amended the previous Fishing Agreement Draft Between Somalia and China. Kindly also note that we are ready to final it (sic) as soon as possible.15

15-16012

65/322

__________________

14 Email from Ahmed Mohamed Iman to the SEMG, 21 August 2015.15 Email on file with the Monitoring Group.

S/2015/801

S/2015/801

Annex 2.1.a: Chart of FGS Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources licence sales from March-August 2015

66/322

15-16012

Annex 2.1.b: Remittance advice form for license fees totalling USD 40,100 for the Xin Shi Ji 37and Xin Shi Ji 76, paid by Yushian International Pty Ltd.

S/2015/801

15-16012

67/322

S/2015/801

Annex 2.1.c: Six-month fishing license for the Xin Shi Ji 76, sold by Director General Iman to agent Simon Chen

68/322

15-16012

Annex 2.1.d: Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Dahabshiil bank statement from 3 February 2015 to 25 August 2015

S/2015/801

15-16012

69/322

15-16012

71/322

9. 9)  Daping Group will build fishing processing plant center in Mogadishu-Somalia after they finish (the test period exploration which is 2 years).

10. 10)  Daping will donate fishing gears to the Somali local fisheries each year. The Daping group will increase the capacity of the Somali fishermen for giving them training and also will give lectures about marine recourses and how to protect the sea for the fishing ministry as a good will return to the Somali people.

11)Dapping pays 70, 000 USD of royalty fee to the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources for support of the capacity building of the ministry and purchase some requirement materials such as of vehicles and this money Daping group will make the payment when they are buying the first fishing licenses from the fishing ministry.

12) In witness whereof, the undersigned, being duly authorized parties respective have signed this Contract.

13) Done in Mogadishu, Somalia on this 25 day of August 2015 in two original copies in the English Language, both text being equally authentic.

Signed by :

MINISTRY OF FISHERIES & MARINE RESORCES ----------------------------- ---------------- Date....................

DOGGANG DAPPING --------------------------------------- 

Source: UN Monitoring Group for Somalia and Eretria