A treaty ceremony held by the FAO in Rome on 30 June 2025 saw four new accessions to FAO’s international treaties on fisheries deposited with the Director-General of FAO.
Jamaica and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines became Parties to the 1993 FAO Agreement to Promote Compliance with International Conservation and Management Measures by Fishing Vessels on the High Seas (High Seas Compliance Agreement), whilst the United Republic of Tanzania and Tuvalu became Parties to the 2009 FAO Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA).
The ceremony also recognised three other FAO members which deposited instruments of accession to the PSMA earlier in 2025 – China, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine.
These accessions continue to broaden the commitment and strengthen implementation of the global governance, compliance and enforcement framework to achieve sustainable fisheries, the FAO said.
As an integral part of the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, the High Seas Compliance Agreement, defines flag states’ responsibilities on the registration, authorisation and control of fishing vessels. The PSMA is a multilateral fisheries control treaty aiming to safeguard the sustainability of living marine resources and the conservation of our oceans, whilst also supporting compliance mechanisms for other ocean-related treaties.
More than two-thirds of the coastal countries of the world are now party to the PSMA. The FAO said the agreement is widely recognised as a highly actionable treaty, with its Parties aiming to maximise its effectiveness in combatting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
