Small Scale Fishing in Tunisia Faces Growing Environmental and Economic Strain

For generations, fishing along Tunisia’s coast has been both livelihood and identity. From the shallow tidal flats of the Gulf of Gabès to the small ports of Sfax, Kerkennah, and Mahdia, the sea once offered a reliable rhythm. Fishermen knew the seasons, the winds, and the species that would arrive and depart each year. That knowledge shaped not only income, but family life, food traditions, and entire coastal cultures.

Today, that rhythm is breaking down. Tunisian fishermen are facing a convergence of pressures that few communities are equipped to absorb. Climate change is altering weather patterns and sea conditions faster than local knowledge can adapt. Fish stocks are declining or shifting their ranges. At the same time, destructive bottom trawling has expanded into coastal waters, undermining both ecosystems and the economic viability of small scale fishing.

Together, these forces are eroding a centuries old relationship between people and sea.

A Coast Shaped by Small Scale Fishing

Tunisia’s fishing history is deeply tied to artisanal practices. With more than 1,300 kilometres of Mediterranean coastline, the country developed one of the largest small scale fishing fleets in the region. The vast majority of Tunisian fishing vessels are small boats operating close to shore, using nets, traps, and fixed gear designed to work with coastal ecosystems rather than against them.

In places like the Kerkennah Islands, fishing traditions such as the charfia system were refined over centuries. Wooden barriers and palm fronds guided fish into enclosures using tides and seasonal movements. These methods depended on healthy seagrass meadows, predictable spawning cycles, and intact coastal habitats. They also reflected a deep understanding of ecological limits.

By the early 2000s, fishing supported tens of thousands of Tunisian families directly and many more through processing, transport, and trade. Fish was both a staple food and an important export, especially to European markets.

That balance is now under strain.

Climate Change Reaches the Docks

The Mediterranean Sea is warming faster than the global ocean average. Rising sea surface temperatures have intensified marine heatwaves, altered currents, and increased the frequency of extreme weather events. For fishermen working in small boats, these changes are not abstract trends. They translate into lost days at sea, damaged equipment, and growing danger.

Fishermen across Tunisia report longer periods of bad weather and storms that arrive with little warning. Conditions that once followed seasonal patterns are now unpredictable. Autumn and winter storms are stronger and more erratic, making it harder to plan fishing trips or ensure safe returns.

Research by international fisheries and climate bodies shows that weather related disruptions already affect fishing activity for a significant portion of the year, particularly in northern and central Tunisia. The risks are highest for artisanal fishermen, whose boats lack the size, shelter, and safety systems of industrial fleets.

In some cases, these risks have been fatal. Storm related sinkings in recent years underscore how climate change is increasing the human cost of fishing in the Mediterranean.

A Sea Rich in Life, and Increasingly Fragile

Beneath Tunisia’s coastal waters lies one of the Mediterranean’s most ecologically important regions. The Gulf of Gabès is unique due to its shallow depth and tidal range, which support vast meadows of Posidonia oceanica seagrass. These underwater forests are among the most productive ecosystems in the sea.

Posidonia meadows act as nurseries for fish, feeding grounds for invertebrates, and carbon sinks that help regulate the climate. Hundreds of marine species depend on them at some stage of their life cycle, including species of commercial importance and others already considered threatened.

Tunisia’s waters also host migratory species, sea turtles, dolphins, and endemic organisms found nowhere else. This biodiversity has long supported artisanal fishing, allowing small scale gear to yield steady catches without exhausting stocks.

However, climate change is weakening this ecological foundation. Warmer waters affect reproduction, oxygen levels, and species distribution. Some fish are migrating north or into deeper waters. Others are declining as habitats degrade.

These changes alone would challenge fishermen. Combined with destructive fishing practices, they become devastating.

The Rise of Bottom Trawling in Coastal Waters

Over the past decade, bottom trawling known locally as kys fishing has expanded dramatically along Tunisia’s coast. Using heavy nets dragged across the seabed, these vessels capture everything in their path. The method is highly efficient in the short term and highly destructive in the long term.

Bottom trawling damages seagrass meadows, disturbs sediments, releases stored carbon, and destroys the complex structures that support marine life. It also tears through the nets and traps used by artisanal fishermen, causing direct economic losses.

Although bottom trawling is regulated under Tunisian law and Mediterranean fisheries agreements, enforcement has struggled to keep pace with its spread. Legal ambiguities, limited monitoring capacity, and misclassification of vessels have allowed trawlers to operate in areas where they are restricted or banned.

In regions such as Sfax and the Gulf of Gabès, the number of kys trawlers has increased sharply since the early 2010s. Many fishermen attribute this rise to declining catches from traditional methods and economic pressure following political and social upheaval after 2011.

The result is a vicious cycle. As trawlers degrade habitats and reduce fish stocks, artisanal fishermen see their catches fall. Some abandon fishing altogether. Others feel compelled to adopt destructive methods themselves, even as they recognise the long term damage.

Economic Stakes Beyond the Shore

Fishing remains economically significant for Tunisia. Annual production reaches well over one hundred thousand tonnes, with a substantial portion exported. European markets are particularly important, making sustainability and traceability critical for trade.

Illegal and indiscriminate fishing practices threaten that relationship. International partners have raised concerns about bottom trawling and enforcement gaps, warning that continued violations could jeopardise exports and reputational standing.

Tunisian authorities have increased inspections, seizures, and surveillance in recent years, and have acknowledged both progress and limitations. With a long coastline and limited resources, oversight remains uneven.

Meanwhile, coastal communities bear the consequences first.

Lives Caught in the Middle

On the docks, the impacts are deeply personal. Fishermen speak of species that once fed families now becoming luxuries. Octopus, once affordable and common, has become scarce and expensive. Younger fishermen hesitate to invest in boats or start families, unsure whether the sea can still provide a future.

Older fishermen recall a time when knowledge of tides, winds, and seasons was enough to make a living. Today, even experience cannot offset degraded ecosystems and unpredictable conditions.

The loss is not only economic. It is cultural. As fishing becomes less viable, traditions tied to food, language, and community risk fading with it.

An Uncertain Horizon

Tunisia’s fishermen are navigating a narrow passage between climate change and industrial pressure. Protecting their future will require more than enforcement alone. It will demand rebuilding marine ecosystems, supporting small scale adaptation, and recognising that artisanal fishing is not a problem to be replaced, but a solution worth preserving.

The sea still holds life. Whether it can continue to sustain those who have depended on it for generations depends on choices made now, before the tide turns further against them.

Sources and References

Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism. Climate Change Deepens the Struggles of Tunisia’s Fishermen, as “Kys” Trawlers Boats Steal Their Livelihoods. 

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Mediterranean fisheries assessments and Tunisia country profiles.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Sixth Assessment Report. Mediterranean regional impacts.

Environmental Justice Foundation. Reports on bottom trawling and seafloor carbon release in Tunisia.

General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean. Technical regulations and Gulf of Gabès management measures.

UNEP Mediterranean Action Plan. Coastal ecosystems and climate vulnerability.

International Union for Conservation of Nature. Mediterranean biodiversity and Posidonia oceanica assessments.

Mongabay. Investigative reporting on illegal trawling and seagrass loss in the Gulf of Gabès.

Giacomo Abrusci, SEVENSEAS Media