FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Report. No. 1012

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Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Rome 2013

ABSTRACT

FAO. 2013.
Report of the thirtieth session of the Committee on Fisheries. Rome, 9–13 July 2012.
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Report. No. 1012. Rome, FAO. 59 pp.

The thirtieth session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) was held in Rome, Italy, from 9 to 13 July 2012. The Committee reviewed the issues of an international character and the FAO programme in fisheries and aquaculture, and their implementation. The Committee, while stressing the high value of the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture as a flagship publication, recommended that FAO should provide more support to countries in data collection and quality control, as well as consider a simpler classification of stock status. The Committee expressed strong support for the standards and norms of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries and its related instruments and agreed on further effort to facilitate their accessibility and more effective implementation. The Committee agreed on the development of best practice guidelines for traceability. The Committee reiterated its support to FAO's collaboration with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and the World Trade Organization. The Committee reiterated the request for additional assistance for aquaculture development in Africa and Small Island Developing States. The Committee requested FAO to develop a conformity assessment framework for aquaculture certification guidelines as well as a draft strategy paper including a long-term strategic plan for the Sub-Committee on Aquaculture and emphasized the specific needs for future work. The Committee urged FAO to reinforce its emphasis on fish as food, ensure that these aspects were not lost in the global and regional frameworks for ocean conservation and management, and assert its leading role in fisheries and aquaculture in ocean governance. The Committee requested FAO to address the issue of hydrocarbon deposits in the oceans and assess possible threats arising from their development. The Committee called for continuous consultation with all stakeholders in the development of the International Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries and agreed on the need to develop implementation strategies for the Guidelines. The Committee agreed that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing continues to be a persistent and pressing problem adversely impacting on sustainable fisheries and food security. The Committee endorsed the terms of reference for the Ad hoc Working Group for the 2009 FAO Agreement on Port State Measures. The Committee requested to convene the second resumed session of the technical consultation on the draft Criteria for Flag State Performance. The Committee reiterated its support for the Global Record of Fishing Vessels, Refrigerated Transport Vessels and Supply Vessels. The Committee agreed that FAO should focus on challenges relevant to its core mandate and must join efforts with partners in better coordination and urged FAO to ensure that fisheries and aquaculture priorities were reflected under the Strategic Objectives. The Committee adopted the revised Rules of Procedure and endorsed the related changes in current practice. The Committee also approved the Multiyear Programme of Work (MYPOW) 2012–2015.

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ISBN 978-92-5-107394-0

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