Global fishing vessel safety standards entered force in 2026 with new IMO crew training codes and expanding Cape Town Agreement membership. Walvis Bay operators face revised lifejacket, man-overboard, and personnel certification requirements affecting procurement timelines.

Commercial Fishing 24 July 2026 • 6 min read

Fishing vessel safety frameworks are tightening globally. Namibia and South Africa are among 28 Member States acceding to the 2012 Cape Town Agreement, representing 3,754 vessels of 24 metres or more in length. Compliance deadlines are approaching, requiring Walvis Bay and Erongo fishing operators to align crew safety equipment and training now.

Cape Town Agreement enters force in 2027

The Cape Town Agreement enters into force 12 months after at least 22 States, collectively representing 3,600 qualifying fishing vessels, consent to being bound by the treaty. Namibia and South Africa are signatory countries. Once in force, States Parties must incorporate the provisions of the 2012 Cape Town Agreement into national law and enforce it as they would any other legislation. This means Namibian and Angolan fishing operators must ensure vessels are compliant with enhanced construction, equipment, and operational standards well in advance of entry into force.

Flag States must ensure that vessels under their registries comply, while Port States have the right to inspect foreign vessels in their ports to verify compliance with the 2012 Cape Town Agreement requirements. For fishing operators based in Walvis Bay or serving SADC ports, this creates dual compliance obligations. A vessel flagged in Namibia must meet home-country standards; the same vessel may be inspected by South African, Angolan, or other port authorities under Port State Control provisions.

New STCW-F training standards live from January 2026

Amendments to the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Fishing Vessel Personnel (STCW-F Convention), together with the newly established mandatory Code on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Fishing Vessel Personnel (STCW-F Code), entered into force on 1 January 2026. These amendments follow a comprehensive review of this treaty in order to respond to the evolving needs of the fishing industry by introducing harmonized qualification standards and establishing a minimum level of competence for personnel serving on fishing vessels covered by the Convention.

For Walvis Bay and Erongo operators, this means captains, bosuns, engineers, and deck crew must hold current certifications meeting the new harmonized standards. Training institutions across SADC are updating curricula, but pipeline delays are common. Operators planning new deployments in the second half of 2026 should prioritise crew training certification audits now to avoid mid-season crew changes due to expired credentials.

Lifejacket and man-overboard recovery gear procurement

While neither Namibian nor Angolan law currently mandates the Cape Town Agreement or STCW-F Code, de facto compliance is spreading in the commercial fleet. Namibia's 2025 Regulations Relating to Fishers emphasise the safety of the vessel, the persons on board or the catch. Operators in Walvis Bay pursuing international accreditation, EU market access, or insurance renewals are voluntarily adopting lifejacket requirements that exceed local minima.

None of the fishermen who died from falling overboard in nationwide studies were wearing a properly-working PFD when they died. PFDs can keep fishermen afloat, giving the crew time for rescue. Commercial best practice now requires every crew member on deck to wear a lifejacket rated for offshore conditions, not recreational buoyancy aids. A man-overboard system will alert the crew that a fall overboard occurred, and a device with GPS capabilities can signal the fisherman's location to assist in search and recovery efforts.

It is very important that operators develop the equipment to retrieve someone back on board before the event occurs. Devices such as Lifesling, MARSARS, Jason's Cradle, Lifenet, or other retrieval systems can be rigged. Also available are man overboard alarms, which can signal crew and even shut off engines and autopilots. These systems are increasingly required by insurance underwriters underwriting vessels operating in Southern African waters.

Angola maritime labour and fishing vessel frameworks

Angola is not a party to the Maritime Labour Convention. Seafarers' rights and safety are generally governed by the Commercial Code, the General Labour Law (Law No 7/15 of 15 June 2015) and the Merchant Navy Law. Angola collaborates with Namibia and South Africa to protect and survey the fishing grounds through a Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional program. This regional cooperation means safety standards are gradually harmonising across the fishing corridor.

Fishing vessels may only operate in Angolan waters if they have obtained a navigability certificate, registration certificate and ownership certificate, as well as a fisheries license. The provisions are without prejudice to the requirement of other certificates for a vessel to be authorized to sail, namely those required by international conventions. For operators based in Walvis Bay targeting Angolan EEZ grounds, this reference to international conventions signals that Cape Town Agreement standards will eventually be enforced at the Port of Luanda and other Angolan entry points.

2026 quota tightness accelerates safety upgrades

The 2026 total allowable catch (TAC) for horse mackerel was set at 197,000 tonnes, a reduction from 208,000 tonnes in 2025. The reduction followed scientific assessments indicating a decline in fish stocks, prompting a more cautious management approach to protect the resource. For operators in the Erongo region and Walvis Bay, the reduction marks the second consecutive year of quota compression in pelagic fisheries.

Tighter quotas mean fewer deployment windows and compressed seasonal schedules. Operators are deploying vessels earlier and for longer stretches to maximise quota utilisation. This operational pressure makes crew safety training and equipment even more critical. A man-overboard incident during a compressed fishing season can cost not just a life but also entire quota seasons if the vessel is grounded for investigation. Safety upgrades are no longer optional compliance measures; they are operational necessity.

About the Author
	Andre Klynsmith Co-Shareholder · Technology & Operations Andre's expertise spans technology, e-commerce, AI integration, and industrial procurement systems, driving Marine Ropes' digital transformation across Southern Africa. salesdesk@marine-ropes.com | marine-ropes.com