The European Commission has expressed its deep concern at the lack of agreement, at a meeting held last week in Mauritius, on a move that would have given the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) the ability to effectively combat illegal fishing in the region.
At last week's meeting, IOTC Members discussed the necessary amendments to the organisation's basic convention to make IOTC an independent regional fisheries management organisation (RFMO). This move would de-link IOTC from the Food and Agriculture Organisation thereby making it an independent organisation on a par with the other tuna RFMOs responsible for the management of tuna fisheries on the high seas.
The Commission says that this move is crucial if the main players fishing for tuna are to be bound by the IOTC's management rules aimed at ensuring sustainable tuna fisheries in the area.
Unfortunately, formal consensus was not reached on the necessary amendments even though these had already been agreed in principle last year, at a meeting, in Goa.
The lack of agreement means that the elements that undermine IOTC's ability to tackle illegal fishing, head on, remain, thus putting the tuna resources in the area under a high risk of depletion.
Such as situation penalises first and foremost the coastal developing states in the area, particularly the local small-scale fisheries. The European Commission reaffirms its full commitment to working with other IOTC Members to ensure that IOTC becomes an independent RFMO and to exploring legal avenues.
RFMOs have shown that they are the most effective instruments at ensuring sustainable management of fisheries on the high seas. This is why IOTC must urgently be given the means to play a full and effective role in the management of the tuna fisheries under its responsibility.
