Concrete steps toward achieving sustainable fisheries – Countries take concrete steps toward achieving sustainable fisheries in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea
More than twenty countries and the European Union adopted 21 measures to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of marine living resources in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.
Following a week of intense discussions, the members of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) adopted a series a binding recommendations and resolutions addressing regional priorities.
Concerted action to ensure a sustainable future for fisheries
Fisheries and aquaculture have been key social and economic drivers in the region for millennia. The last ten years have finally witnessed improvements in the status of stocks suffering from ever-increasing anthropogenic pressures. With 75 percent of fish stocks subject to overfishing (SOMFI 2020), the sustainable management of resources has been a priority for countries in order to ensure the food security and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people.
“Our work, and especially our cooperation has shown that overfishing is not inevitable. By protecting our seas, we are protecting our heritage and the future of the generations yet to come” said the EU Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, H.E. Virginijus Sinkevičius. “We are protecting our local communities, by ensuring food security and the future of the people working in these sectors, especially artisanal fisheries and aquaculture.”
The decisions made on Friday include the reinforcement of a research programme on rapa whelk, measures addressing the management of European eel, red coral, blackspot seabream, giant red shrimp, blue and red shrimp and turbot, as well as catch limits, temporal or geographical closures and bans on recreational fisheries.
Improving the culture of compliance
As the effectiveness of adopted recommendations relies on their systematic transposition into national legislation by countries, the GFCM also strives to build a culture of compliance and mutual trust and to fight illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
For the first time ever, countries have fixed general rules regulating transhipments at sea in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, entailing a complete prohibition except in cases of force majeure.
Furthermore, upon the successful completion of a pilot phase, management measures to curtail IUU fishing were reinforced with the operationalization of long-term permanent inspection schemes valid until 2030. The schemes encourage joint efforts between several countries to organize inspections, provide means and human capacity and harmonize practices and procedures.
Finally, the GFCM logbook established in 2010 was updated with new requirements in line with recent GFCM priorities. Fishers now play a more essential role in providing information – reported in vessel logbooks – on the possible bycatch of vulnerable species during fishing operations.
An institution equipped to enable countries to make informed decision on fisheries
Last week marked the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the GFCM. The event, opened by the Albanian Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, H.E. Frida Krifca, and the Director of the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, Dr Manuel Barange, speaking on behalf of the FAO Director-General, used the occasion to recall the evolution of the GFCM into its current form as a modern, efficient and effective regional fisheries management organization.
“The history of the GFCM is ripe with achievements. What has remained constant is the support provided by FAO to the GFCM, which has ultimately allowed it to evolve into a Commission responsive to the needs of its Members,” said Dr Barange.
“It has been the work of all of us and our predecessors that has led us to the point where we are today, and I would also like to thank the European Union for their strong financial support, and all countries for their commitment and contribution to address our common goals,” added Roland Kristo, Chairperson of GFCM and Deputy minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. “It is now up to all of us to guide the GFCM ahead into the future, better equipped than ever before but also facing some of the steepest challenges in our history.”
Countries entrust the leadership of the GFCM to a scientist of international stature
After a selection process overseen by the FAO management and GFCM members, the FAO Director-General proposed Dr Miguel Bernal as the new GFCM Executive Secretary. The nomination of the Spanish national was unanimously approved by the GFCM Members last week. He will be responsible for the implementation of the policies and activities of the GFCM, managing its Secretariat on behalf of the Members.
Biennial results on the state of fisheries coming up in December
The eyes of the fishing community are now focused on December 7, when an update on the state of fisheries in the region will be published, confirming whether we are on the right track to address the critical status of the region’s fisheries in the face of numerous pressures on the ecosystem, from climate change to plastic pollution.
Main Image Courtesy: ©GFCM-Pier Paolo Cito