CHALLENGES TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENT

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CHALLENGES TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENT

by D. Gréboval, FAO
WTO Symposium on Trade and Sustainable
Development. OCTOBER 2005
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Status Trends selected indicators

• Reported landings
• State of stocks
• Fleet size
• Employment
• Food
• Trade

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STATUS TRENDS IN FISHERIES

• High level of overexploitation (about 30 of main
  stocks most others highly exploited)
• Severe reduction in abundance of key species
  (fishing down the food chain)
• Significant environmental degradation (mangrove,
  coral reefs, sea beds, etc.)
• High level of overcapacity (fleet size down in
  number since the late 90s but not necessarily so
  for fishing power)

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STATUS TRENDS IN FISHERIES

• Increased competition for access to stocks
  (industrial vs. small scale commercial or small
  scale recreational international competition for
  access to EEZs or High Sea)
• High level of illegal, non reported and non
  regulated (IUU) fishing
• Growth in international trade of fish, capital
  intensity and vertical concentration
• Severe socio-economic impacts on industry, food
  security and poverty

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Reported marine production
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Stocks trends 1974-2003
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International trade
Trade has been growing at a reducing rate
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Fleet size From past to future
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2. Selected issues
Classical
New/Emerging

• Overfishing
• Overcapacity / fleet size
• Economic viability
• Subsidies
• Bycatch and discards
• Monitoring (MCS)
• Right-based systems
• Natural oscillations
• Fishmeal
• Statistics
• Capacity-building
• RFMOs
• Non-tariff barriers trade
• Precautionary approach

• Extinction and FAO-CITES
• Capture-based aquaculture
• Labor standards
• Catch certification
• Ecolabelling
• Deep sea fisheries
• Stock recovery
• Biodiversity, ecosystem
• IUU
• Climate change
• Decentralization co-management
• Ethics Animal welfare

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3. OVERALL CHALLENGE ADAPTING TO CHANGE IN
GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK

• From the old productivist paradigm
• not accounting effectively for limits to
  production
• based on open access (even if often regulated)
• complemented by basic conservation measures
  (stock/habitat protection).
• Toward a new management paradigm based on
• New policy framework Code of Conduct for
  responsible Fisheries (1995) and related
  international instruments
• effective access control and rights
• industry participation and some form of
  co-management
• effective integration of management and
  conservation measures.

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CHALLENGES TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENTA. Undertake
institutional reform

• Review and systematically adapt laws, policies,
  institutions and decision making processes to the
  new policy framework (CCRF )
• Adapt approaches and measures for effective
  access control (direct or indirect)
• Adapt economic incentives disincentives
  (subsidies, fiscal measures)
• Address the issue of responsibilities, rights and
  co-management with stakeholder
• Address the issue of multilevel governance

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CHALLENGES TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENT B. Address
related core issues

• Define/redefine fisheries management units
  (ecosystems, fisheries, fleet segments, etc.)
• Reduce fishing capacity when it exits freeze
  capacity and reduce effort if the only workable
  solution in the short-medium term
• Research and adopt measure for reconstitution of
  major stocks affected by overexploitation
• Address IUU issues as per the guidance provided
  by the IPOA and through the mainstreaming of
  fisheries management measures
• Reconcile fisheries management and conservation
  forcing the linkage so as to avoid the tendency
  to conserve while letting go of management

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CHALLENGES TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENTC. Enhance
international cooperation

• Strengthen Regional Fisheries Management
  Organizations
• Assist developing countries in organizing and
  developing the capacities required for fisheries
  management
• Enhance cooperation for the implementation of
  key fisheries management instruments (CCRF, Fish
  Stock and Compliance Agreement, IPOAs on
  capacity and IUU, etc.)
• Provide support to more appropriately address new
  issues at the global level (e.g. through
  coordinated research, global assessment,
  international expert reviews and global
  consultations)

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CHALLENGES TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENT D.
Account for the Social Response

• Media Storming
• Societal call for conservation (but not
  necessarily for fisheries management)
• Consumer mobilisation
• Court actions

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4. CONCLUSIONS

• Many issues to be addressed
• New demands to be expected from more active
  stakeholders
• Main challenge is to not forget fundamental
  requirements for management and focus on
  developing an enabling environment for the
  implementation of existing instruments - as
  recommended by COFI 2005

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THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION

WTO Symposium on Trade and Sustainable
Development. OCTOBER 2005