Competition or collaboration? EU and Chinese engagement with aquaculture sustainability in Africa

Fatime L. Traore, Lin Zhang, Yuan Yuan, Annah Lake Zhu and Simon R. Bush

Development Policy Review, 2025, vol. 43, issue 4

Abstract: Motivation The sustainability of aquaculture worldwide is increasingly shaped by international relations. The European Union (EU) and China have considerable influence on the sustainability of the industry, both domestically and globally. However, little is known about the similarities and differences between the region and country that govern aquaculture sustainability internally and how they shape the sustainability of the sector in other parts of the world, including rapidly developing aquaculture regions in Africa. Purpose We assess the domestic governance of sustainability in aquaculture in the EU and China. We then analyse the extent to which these two areas translate their internal sustainability goals into aquaculture‐related development cooperation with African countries. Approach and methods We undertook a scoping review of domestic policy for the sustainable development of aquaculture in the EU and China. We reviewed EU and Chinese development projects, financing, and trade policies supporting aquaculture development in Africa. The findings of these reviews were validated in a workshop. Findings Although the EU and China express similar technical and environmental concerns, they differ in their governance of their domestic aquaculture sectors. Similarly, at the international level, while both the EU and China have explicitly committed to promote sustainable aquaculture overseas, their approaches to achieving these ambitions through development cooperation differ substantially. EU cooperation includes creating (ambitious) norms for sustainability in Africa. China avoids influencing the domestic policies of African countries, preferring to provide training and technical cooperation. Our comparison reveals areas of existing competition between the EU and China in the development of aquaculture internationally, but also overlooked areas of potential complementarity and cooperation. Policy implications Our findings contribute to an improved understanding of aquaculture governance and enable the exploration of possibilities for greater alignment between EU and Chinese interventions in aquaculture around the world.

Date: 2025
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