Côte d'Ivoire
Africa · Western Africa
Côte d'Ivoire has no statute or decree that specifically names, authorises or prohibits recreational underwater fishing / spearfishing ('pêche sous-marine' / 'chasse sous-marine'). All fishing is governed by Law No. 2016-554 of 26 July 2016 on fishing and aquaculture, which requires authorisation/licences for fishing activity and creates a dedicated 'pêche sportive' (sport fishing) licence (Art. 38) issued by the Minister in charge of fisheries (after consulting the ministers of sport and tourism). The same law prohibits fishing of internationally protected species (Art. 11) and bans destructive methods such as explosives and toxic/anaesthetising substances. Because there is no spearfishing-specific permit and the activity falls under general fishing-authorisation rules plus area- and species-based restrictions, spearfishing is best classified as RESTRICTED rather than freely allowed. Additional spatial restrictions apply inside the Grand-Béréby Marine Protected Area (decree adopted 6 July 2022), where fishing and hunting are regulated. Sport/charter sea fishing (marlin, tuna, etc.) is actively practised out of Assinie, Grand-Bassam and Abidjan, with operators obtaining the required permits in advance.
Última actualización junio 14, 2026
Marco regulador
- §Loi n° 2016-554 du 26 juillet 2016 relative à la pêche et à l'aquaculture (Law No. 2016-554 of 26 July 2016 on fishing and aquaculture)
- §Décret portant création de l'Aire Marine Protégée de Grand-Béréby, adopted by the Council of Ministers on 6 July 2022
- Licencia obligatoria
- Obligatoria
- Extranjeros
- Bienvenidos
La ley, literal
Textos legales
Las disposiciones legales y reglamentarias exactas que regulan la pesca submarina aquí, citadas tal como están publicadas, con un enlace a cada fuente oficial.
Sport fishing licence and artisanal fishing licence
Loi n° 2016-554 du 26 juillet 2016 relative à la pêche et à l'aquaculture
Article 38 : L'exercice de la pêche artisanale est soumis à l'obtention préalable d'une licence délivrée par le Ministre chargé des pêches, après avis du Ministre chargé des affaires maritimes portant sur la navigabilité de l'embarcation. L'exercice de la pêche sportive est subordonné à l'obtention préalable d'une licence de pêche délivrée au nom du demandeur par le Ministre chargé des pêches, après avis des Ministres chargés des sports et du tourisme. Les modalités d'octroi, de renouvellement et de retrait de la licence de pêche artisanale et de la licence de pêche sportive sont fixées par voie réglementaire.
Prohibition on taking protected species (covers spearing/hunting)
Loi n° 2016-554 du 26 juillet 2016 relative à la pêche et à l'aquaculture
Article 11 : La pêche, la chasse, la capture et la détention de toutes espèces protégées en vertu des conventions internationales applicables sont interdites, sauf autorisation spéciale du Ministre chargé des pêches, pour des fins de recherche scientifique ou technique.
Cuándo puedes bucear
Temporadas y restricciones horarias
Periodos de veda, de apertura y restringidos a lo largo del año. Confirma siempre localmente las vedas específicas de cada especie.
- RestringidoAll fishing (zones, periods and species set by regulation)
Law No. 2016-554 (Art. 9) provides that implementing regulations determine the zones, periods and circumstances in which fishing may be prohibited or limited (biological-rest / closed seasons). No nationwide spearfishing-specific closed season with fixed dates was found in the retrieved official sources; specific dates are set by separate ministerial regulation.
Permiso para pescar
Licencia
Qué necesitas para poder estar en el agua, cuánto cuesta y cómo conseguirlo.
Sport fishing licence is issued by the Minister in charge of fisheries after the advice of the ministers in charge of sport and tourism (Art. 38). Detailed grant/renewal/withdrawal procedures are set by separate regulation. In practice, charter/sport-fishing operators (Assinie, Grand-Bassam, Abidjan) obtain the required permits on behalf of clients.
Consigue tu licenciaAbre el portal oficial · ressourcesanimales.gouv.ci
- Tipo
- Licence de pêche sportive (sport fishing licence) under Law No. 2016-554, Art. 38; no spearfishing-specific licence exists. General fishing in Ivorian waters requires authorisation.
- Coste
- unknown
- Validez
- unknown
- Cómo obtenerla
- Sport fishing licence is issued by the Minister in charge of fisheries after the advice of the ministers in charge of sport and tourism (Art. 38). Detailed grant/renewal/withdrawal procedures are set by separate regulation. In practice, charter/sport-fishing operators (Assinie, Grand-Bassam, Abidjan) obtain the required permits on behalf of clients.
- Autoridad
- Ministère chargé des Pêches (Ministry in charge of Fisheries) — Ministère des Ressources Animales et Halieutiques
Equipo y técnica
Normas de equipo
Qué equipo está permitido, cómo puede usarse y las condiciones asociadas.
Restricciones
- Fishing with explosive materials, toxic substances or anaesthetising baits (capable of weakening, stunning, exciting or killing aquatic resources, or of contaminating their habitat) is prohibited (Law No. 2016-554).
- Use of prohibited fishing gear/methods and of nets with non-compliant mesh sizes is prohibited (penal provisions of Law No. 2016-554).
Law No. 2016-554 does not specifically address spearguns ('fusil-harpon'), free-diving or the use of SCUBA for fishing; there is no explicit national rule permitting or banning spearguns or scuba-assisted spearfishing in the retrieved official sources.
Lo que puedes capturar
Límites de captura y especies protegidas
Cuotas diarias, tallas mínimas y especies que nunca deben capturarse.
Límite diario
unknown
Especies protegidas — no capturar
- ProtegidaAll species protected under applicable international conventions (Art. 11 of Law No. 2016-554) — e.g. marine turtles and sharks, which the Grand-Béréby MPA was specifically created to protect.
- ProtegidaMinimum landing sizes for certain fish and crustacean species are set by implementing regulation (Art. 9 of Law No. 2016-554); specific values were not retrievable from official sources.
Specific recreational daily bag limits and minimum sizes for spearfishing were not found in the retrieved official sources; they are delegated to implementing regulations.
Quién puede pescar
Visitantes y residentes
Cómo difieren las normas para los visitantes extranjeros y los residentes locales.
Visitantes extranjeros
PermitidoSe requiere licencia especial
Requisitos
- Hold the relevant fishing licence/authorisation (sport fishing licence under Art. 38 for recreational sport fishing).
- Artisanal fishing in waters under Ivorian jurisdiction is reserved for nationals but may be authorised to non-nationals in accordance with treaties/agreements to which Côte d'Ivoire is party (Art. 39).
Restricciones
- Article 39 of Law No. 2016-554 reserves artisanal fishing to nationals, with exceptions only under international treaties/agreements.
Foreign visitors commonly take part in sport/charter sea fishing out of Assinie, Grand-Bassam and Abidjan; operators generally obtain the necessary permits in advance. No dedicated foreigner spearfishing regime was identified.
Residentes
Licence de pêche sportive / licence de pêche artisanale under Law No. 2016-554 (Art. 38).
Ventajas
- Artisanal fishing in waters under Ivorian jurisdiction is reserved primarily for nationals (Art. 39).
No spearfishing-specific resident regime was identified in official sources.
Dónde en la costa
Zonas permitidas y prohibidas
Áreas concretas abiertas o cerradas a la pesca submarina. Consulta el panorama completo en el mapa interactivo.
Áreas prohibidas
- Aire Marine Protégée de Grand-Béréby (Grand-Béréby Marine Protected Area)marine protected area
First marine protected area of Côte d'Ivoire, located in the Grand-Béréby sub-prefecture, San-Pedro department (south-west coast). Decree adopted by the Council of Ministers on 6 July 2022; it covers approximately 272,375 hectares and extends about 50 km along the coast. Important sea-turtle nesting site with mangroves and reefs; fishing and hunting inside the area are subject to regulation/restriction in favour of conservation. Coordinates not included because the figures reported in secondary press sources were inconsistent and could not be verified against an official source.
A quién preguntar
Autoridades
Los organismos oficiales responsables de la pesca y las licencias.
Ministère des Ressources Animales et Halieutiques (Ministry of Animal and Fisheries Resources)
fisheries authority
Ministère de l'Environnement et du Développement Durable (Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development)
environment ministry
Authority behind the Grand-Béréby Marine Protected Area
De dónde proviene
Fuentes
Cada afirmación de esta página se remonta a una de estas referencias.
- [01]
Loi n° 2016-554 du 26 juillet 2016 relative à la pêche et à l'aquaculture — full text (official scanned PDF, FAOLEX/FAO)
Oficialfaolex.fao.orgConsultado Jun 14 - [02]
Loi n° 2016-554 du 26 juillet 2016 relative à la pêche et à l'aquaculture — record (ECOLEX)
Oficialecolex.orgConsultado Jun 14 - [03]
Loi n° 2016-554 du 26 juillet 2016 relative à la pêche et à l'aquaculture — record (InforMEA)
Oficialinformea.orgConsultado Jun 14 - [04]
Lois & Codes & Arrêtés — Ministère des Ressources Animales et Halieutiques (national fisheries authority)
Oficialressourcesanimales.gouv.ciConsultado Jun 14 - [05]
Le gouvernement ivoirien adopte un décret portant création de l'Aire Marine Protégée de Grand-Béréby (CCI-CI press review)
Secundariaccilci.orgConsultado Jun 14 - [06]
La première aire marine protégée ivoirienne créée à Grand-Bereby (AIP — Agence Ivoirienne de Presse)
Secundariaaip.ciConsultado Jun 14 - [07]
Pêche en Côte d'Ivoire — sport/charter fishing context (Fishing World Guide)
communityfishingworldguide.comConsultado Jun 14
Notas del investigador
ANTI-FABRICATION / PROVENANCE: Côte d'Ivoire has no spearfishing-specific (pêche sous-marine / chasse sous-marine) statute or decree; the only national fisheries instrument is Law No. 2016-554 of 26 July 2016 (121 articles, 6 titles), which regulates all fishing via authorisations/licences, including a 'pêche sportive' licence (Art. 38), prohibits taking internationally protected species (Art. 11), and bans destructive gear (explosives, toxic/anaesthetising substances). The full official text is only available as a scanned PDF on FAOLEX (https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/ivc159952.pdf); its machine OCR is heavily degraded. The verbatim_text quoted for Articles 11 and 38 was transcribed from that official scanned PDF and normalised to standard French legal orthography to repair clear OCR scrambling; wording is faithful to the source but minor transcription differences versus the printed Journal Officiel are possible — treat the FAOLEX PDF as canonical. The Grand-Béréby Marine Protected Area decree was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 6 July 2022 (~272,375 ha, ~50 km of coast, Grand-Béréby sub-prefecture, San-Pedro department); coordinates were omitted because secondary press figures were internally inconsistent and unverifiable against an official source. Licence cost/validity, exact closed-season dates, recreational bag/size limits, and explicit speargun/scuba rules are delegated to implementing regulations that were not retrievable from authoritative sources; these are marked 'unknown'. Confidence: medium — the primary statute and the MPA are well established from official/authoritative sources, but spearfishing-specific operational detail is genuinely absent from Ivorian law.
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