The full issue can be found here: www.thecontinent.org/_files/ugd/2...
09.02.2026 17:54
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The full issue can be found here: www.thecontinent.org/_files/ugd/2...
A small contribution to this week’s issue of @thecontinent.org:
That said, it’s unclear to what degree the plants still in operation are adhering to the rules.
While fishmeal production has fallen by more than half since its 2020 peak, figures remain relatively high, with signs that some catch is being misreported as waste fish.
Interviewed plant owners said that the new laws made it difficult to access raw fish, making their operations unviable.
The closures seem to result from a series of regulations introduced since 2021 that restrict which fish can be used for fishmeal, alongside new zoning laws – which have pushed the industrial vessels supplying the factories out of the fish-abundant coastal waters.
We visited or spoke to all of Mauritania’s 44 fishmeal establishments. According to our estimates, only eight remain active.
Until recently, Mauritania was a major fishmeal producer, home to the world’s second-highest number of processing plants.
The boom was driven largely by lax regulations and the rapid issuance of permits between 2007 and 2021.
My new piece for @mongabay.com, with Oliver Dunn, analyses how Mauritania cracked down on its once-booming fishmeal industry.
news.mongabay.com/2026/01/maur...
“Mohamed Ould Ghadda, President of NGO the Organization for Inclusive Transparency, was arrested at his home just before midnight, shortly after he announced he would present evidence of corruption in a case prosecutors had dismissed.”
Oliver Dunn and I for @occrp.org:
Together with Oliver Dunn, we tried to bring some clarity to last month's obscure and confusing military coup in Guinea-Bissau – our new analysis for Africa Confidential:
Since early this year, Mauritania has been waging a mass deportation campaign targeting African migrants.
Oliver Dunn and I spent weeks on the ground mapping abuses by authorities – and how the campaign is affecting the lives of migrant workers.
Our story for Al Jazeera:
The piece, shedding new light on how Leijdekkers found himself in Sierra Leone and how he has operated there, can be read here:
My deep dive, with Oliver Dunn for @newlinesmag.bsky.social, into how Jos Leijdekkers inserted himself into Sierra Leone’s elite – and quietly rebuilt his cocaine trafficking empire.
“Having successfully waited out the scandal, the administration has no incentive to act.”
NEW: When the Dutch drug kingpin “Chubby” Jos Leijdekkers fled authorities in Europe, he landed in Freetown, Sierra Leone, where he rebuilt his empire alongside the country’s ruling family, report Oliver Dunn & @josefskrdlik.bsky.social for @newlinesmag.bsky.social.
newlinesmag.com/reportage/wh...
My new piece, together with Oliver Dunn, for @africa-confidential.com, analysing recent developments in Mauritania’s political economy. We explore how the fall of former President Abdel Aziz affected political alliances, and examine Mauritania’s growing pragmatic partnership with the EU.
And:
Eid al-Adha celebrations in Mauritania:
“The first lady drew a baseless link in her video between OCCRP’s investigation and her dispute with Koidu Limited, a company operating Sierra Leone’s largest diamond mine.”
The OCCRP exposé in Sierra Leonean newspapers:
Jabbe-Bio has been outspoken against child marriage and sexual violence.
Her activism has led to invitations to speak at prominent western universities and international forums, including Harvard and the UN General Assembly.
She was named 2024’s “First Lady of the Year”.
Meanwhile, the waiting list for London’s social housing is at its longest in a decade. As of April last year, 336,366 eligible households remain in the lurch.
Jabbe-Bio has not replied to a request for comment.
The reason for her tenancy is unclear – Jabbe-Bio resides in Sierra Leone’s luxurious presidential lodge.
She also owns an extensive property portfolio in The Gambia, my investigation published with OCCRP revealed.
Jabbe-Bio was registered to vote at the address several times since 2009 and still receives post there. The council confirmed the flat has had the same tenant since 2007.
A neighbour said she visited the property last year accompanied by an official delegation.
A modest block of social housing in south London has an unlikely tenant – the first lady of Sierra Leone.
Our story for The Times revealed how Fatima Jabbe-Bio continues to rent her council flat seven years into her husband’s presidency.
My other story, with Oliver Dunn for The Times, reveals the first lady continues to rent her London council flat – despite living in the luxury of the presidential lodge in Freetown.
Meanwhile, London’s social housing waiting list has hit a 10-year high.
www.thetimes.com/uk/london/ar...
Three of the properties were bought with the help of Alphonso King, a top government contractor in Freetown.
King signed key paperwork and also paid stamp duty on a villa bought by Jabbe-Bio’s mother.
He is frequently seen alongside the first lady in official settings.
The money spent was just over $2.1 million, excluding construction costs, but some of the purchase prices appear heavily understated.
This villa, for example, sold in 2024 for less than the empty plot of land it sits on did in 2012.
Before coming to power, the presidential couple lived a modest life in social housing in south London.
They haven’t answered questions about the source of the funds used for the property acquisitions.
From 2020 to 2024, the first lady, her elderly mother and half-brothers bought at least 10 properties, including villas, luxury apartments and a four-storey apartment building.
One of the half-brothers is also constructing a 70-bedroom hotel.
Since Julius Maada Bio became Sierra Leone’s president in April 2018, his wife and her family have scooped up luxury properties in The Gambia – with funds of unexplained origin.
My investigation for OCCRP exposes Fatima Jabbe-Bio’s real estate portfolio.
www.occrp.org/en/investiga...