Progress is being made towards the development of a regional fisheries policy for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM):
more than 80 people from across the Caribbean in fisheries administration, research, fisherfolk organisations and business gathered in Kingston, Jamaica, to promote the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy (CCCFP).
The policy, which is an overarching set of guidelines and principles aimed at regional co-operation in the management of the shared marine ecosystem, is soon to be a reality for CARICOM.
“The draft agreement establishing the CCCFP was received by the special meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) on October 2011 in Dominica. The COTED recommended that the draft agreement be reviewed by the CARICOM Legal Affairs Committee, which will then forward the policy for the consideration of heads of government through the appropriate channel,” said Safiya Ali, acting general counsel of the CARICOM Secretariat.
The policy further sets the framework and key principles for the culturing and harvesting of fish and other marine resources as provided for by the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas and other international instruments.
“It sets standards for regulation, licensing and management at the national level with a view to achieving harmonisation of legislation and practices. This brings the fisheries sector in line with treaty provisions in relation to trade policy and provides the basis for future elaboration of a community-managed regime,” said Ali.
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Also giving support for the common fisheries policy is the Caribbean Network for Fisherfolk Organisations (CNFO) that represents fishers in the region. Mitchell Lay, coordinator for the CNFO is very pleased to be a part of the development of the policy as the contributions of fishers across the region has been assimilated.
“This is a result of being integrated within the governance structure of national organisations to provide a united front for networking, representation and capacity building at the regional level for marketing and trade,” commented Lay.
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Jamaica’s director of fisheries, Andre Kong agreed with his colleagues that the common fisheries policy confirms the commitment of member states to address the issues identified in the policy and provides the opportunity for the mobilisation of resources for national and regional projects.
“Additionally, the policy provides the Caribbean with one voice on the world stage to tackle the critical issues that affect CARICOM members states, such as survival and safety at sea and illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing (IUU),” said Kong.
For more information, see the full article at Caribbean News Now.
Previously on Green Antilles: Caribbean fisheries highly vulnerable to climate change and Fish catches decline in the Caribbean, and the fisheries sector is undervalued.
[Photo: Sue Kellerman]
