Having completely emptied their own reserves, foreign industrial fishing trawlers from the likes of Europe and Russia had moved into West African waters where they are continuing their large scale destructive fishing practices. 

Recent cancelling of fishing licenses by the the newly elected Senegalese government has been a very important first step towards restoring the fisheries to what they were before large-scale plunder began.

Fishermen have seen a considerable improvement in their catches since the departure of big trawlers from Senegalese waters. Local people have welcomed this, but one artisanal fisherman added "We will continue our struggle until total victory, that is to say, until the implementation of a sustainable fisheries in Senegal."

See pictures of Senegal's new catch below.