The use and management of fish supplies, fish stocks and those who work in fishing and related businesses needs to be governed by good policies and actions, based as far as possible on good research-based advice and other expert information. Fisheries policy makers and managers work in a milieu that...
At the 2001 WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha, World Trade Ministers called for improved disciplines on fisheries subsidies, given the perceived impact of these subsidies in contributing to overfishing, overcapacity and other trade distortions. Subsequent deliberations have sought to determine which fisheries subsidies should be disciplined under the WTO framework....
The concept of an ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EAF) is reaching a point of general acceptance by those involved in fisheries. There is also growing agreement that fisheries management must incorporate the complicated and often not-well-understood links between human activities and the environment. As a primary goal of an...
The increasing move to citizen participation in policy formulation is being witnessed in European fisheries. The emergence of the Regional Advisory Councils (RACs) and other processes via the reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is sparking hope and interest in more regionally relevant, holistic, and hopefully workable fisheries management measures. In...
Why are fisheries policies so hard to reform? While there are many examples of successful policy reform in the sector, these tend to be restricted to a few countries or individual fisheries. There remains significant scope for further reform to address pressing economic, environmental and social issues in the sector....
Earlier this year a White Paper from the Norwegian Minister of the Environment presented a new, holistic, area-based management plan for the Norwegian part of the Barents Sea, including the Fishery protection zone around Svalbard. The plan will provide guidelines for managing human activities in relation to their use and...
Restrictions on flows of foreign direct investment (FDI) in most sectors of OECD countries have been significantly reduced in recent years. In contrast, FDI in the fish harvesting sectors of OECD countries is still heavily restricted through a range of measures including outright bans on FDI, maximum allowable levels of...
The New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries recently set out a strategic approach to managing the adverse effects of fishing on the aquatic environment. The primary purpose of this Strategy for Managing the Environmental Effects of Fishing (SMEEF) is to set out how the Ministry of Fisheries will meet its environmental...
Commercial property rights in New Zealand are designed to address utilisation and sustainability issues relating to single-stock management. However, commercial property rights may not provide incentives that address environmental impacts of fishing if these impacts do not affect the value of the property right. But is it really that simple?...
The outcome of the current multilateral trade negotiations in the Doha Round will have large implications on international fish trade. The author highlights the most likely scenarios in areas such as market access and fisheries subsidies, and outlines the very diverse interests and negotiation positions of WTO members.