The General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) has agreed to new proposals tabled by its members, taking steps towards supporting sustainable fisheries and aquaculture.
At its 42nd session, held at the Food and Agricultural Organisation’s headquarters in Rome, the GFCM has indicated that its members understand the urgency needed in addressing stock levels in the Mediterranean and Black seas.
Abdellah Srour, executive secretary of GFCM, said: “The GFCM is leading the way in implementing international initiatives at a regional level and great strides are being made with the support of scientific evidence.”
In its 2018 paper, The State of the World Fisheries and Aquaculture, the FAO reported that a high share of stocks is unsustainably exploited in the Mediterranean and Black seas, hence the need for urgent action.
Following a year of continuous effort, all countries involved have now reached a consensus on the new proposals presented with a total of 11 recommendations being adopted.
These relate in particular to plans for trawl fisheries in the Levant, the Ionian Sea and the Strait of Sicily; conservation measures for sharks and rays; plans for European eel in the Mediterranean and further emergency measures for small pelagic stocks in the Adriatic Sea.
In addition, decisions were taken to improve monitoring control and surveillance, such as inspection schemes in the Strait of Sicily and Adriatic Sea and the marking of fishing gear.
