The UN''s Food and Agriculture Organization has been awarded the Swedish Seafood Award for its work with the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries.
Accepting the prize at a ceremony in Gothenburg, Mr Ichiro Nomura, FAO Assistant Director-General said: "We at FAO, and particularly in FAO's Fisheries Department, are deeply grateful for this recognition of the work of the Organization, particularly in relation to the implementation of the Code of Conduct,"
An FAO statement said the citation for the prize in the Sustainable Fishing category commended FAO for its work on the code and technical guidelines, which were done by the organization's Fisheries Department. The code's promote global and regional cooperation in all sorts of national fishing industries, including small-scale fishing. It also stresses that environmentally sound and sustainable fishing can only be achieved through international effort.
The jury stressed that FAO's work in securing food production has become increasingly important with the development of the fishing industry and with the overexploitation of fish stocks.
"The Jury wants to recognize the excellent work of FAO's Fisheries Department. There are now generally-accepted norms, which were needed for better global and regional cooperation. Those norms should also be used for the management of all kinds of national fisheries, including those on a small scale," the jury said.
Vital source of food
"Code of Conduct rests on the fundamental premise that fisheries, including aquaculture, provide a vital source of food, employment, recreation, trade and economic wellbeing for women, men and young people of both present and future generations throughout the world, and that these must therefore be conducted in a responsible manner. Since its adoption by FAO Member States nearly 10 years ago, the code has served as the primary framework for FAO's fisheries work programme," Nomura said.
The Swedish Seafood Award is organized by the trade organization Svensk Fisk (Swedish Fish), based in Gothenburg and run by the Swedish fishing industry. The organization aims to focus the public's attention on the urgent need for all countries to increase their cooperation for better fisheries management.
FAO said it would put the prize money of 300,000 kronor (US$41 300), into its efforts with developing countries for the promotion of responsible fisheries.
