BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – The second Regional Technical Workshop on the Ratification and Implementation of the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement in Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member states opened here on Monday, with regional countries being urged to ratify the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement on fisheries subsidies.
The two-day event, which is bringing together Caribbean senior trade and fisheries officials and representatives from partner organizations, will provide resources and tools to guide the ratification and implementation of the WTO agreement on fisheries subsidies.
The director of the WTO Rules Division, Clarisse Morgan, told the opening ceremony that the Agreement prohibits subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IU) fishing, subsidies for stocks that are already overfished, and subsidies for unregulated fishing in the high seas.
“These harmful practices play a major role in overexploiting the world’s fish stocks, and they have direct negative consequences for this region,” Morgan said, adding that IU fishing alone costs the Caribbean region an estimated US$700 to US$900 million annually.
“Also, around 40 percent of the commercially harvested fish stock in the region are either overly exploited or depleted,” she said, telling the conference that illegal or unsustainable practices jeopardize the livelihoods of thousands of people who depend on fishing and lawful work in the sector.
She said the practice harms food security, national economies, and ocean ecosystems.
“Your government’s positive actions …demonstrate how seriously you take this problem. To name just a few, several CARICOM member states are parties to the FAOs (Food and Agriculture Organization) Agreement on fourth-state measures to prevent, deter, and eliminate IU fishing, and member countries of the Western, Central Atlantic Fisheries Commission have adopted a regional plan of action to prevent, deter, and eliminate IU fishing. “
She said the WTO agreement on fisheries subsidies provides a powerful tool to reinforce the other policy measures.
“All of your governments recognized this complementarity and its benefits for the region when they agreed to adopt the Agreement at MC 12 (the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference on 17 June 2022).
“But adoption by the WTO members is not enough. The Agreement‘s positive effects can begin only when it enters into force, and this requires two-thirds of WTO members, 110 members, to deposit their individual instruments of acceptance with the WTO Secretariat.”
But Morgan said that “as of today, we received only 72 instruments, so we need only 38 more for entry into force.
“Many members, including some in the Caribbean, have indicated being quite advanced in their domestic processes. So we expect more instruments to be deposited shortly,” she said, noting that efforts are needed to make it effective by June this year.
She said six CARICOM countries, Belize, Cuba, St. Lucia, Barbados, Haiti, and Dominica, have already deposited their instruments of acceptance, saying, “This is extremely encouraging, and I hope for those of you still working on ratifications that this timely workshop will provide concrete support that will enable you to bring your process to a speedy conclusion.”
Morgan said while Caribbean governments are engaged in efforts to improve the sustainability of the fishing sector, the WTO is aware of how complex the process could be in implementing the Agreement.” At the same time, beneficial will add to these challenges.”
However, she said the Agreement specifically recognizes the need for technical assistance and support for less developed countries. She said the WTO Fisheries Mechanism Trust Fund was officially created in November 2022, and to date, it has received contributions and pledges of US$16 million.
She said that as soon as the fund is fully established, LDCs can receive financial support.
“So having access to the fund is an excellent reason to accelerate the domestic ratification process as much as possible, Morgan said, adding that the efforts regarding the second wave of negotiations on fisheries are continuing despite the failure to reach Agreement at MC 12.
The Belize-based Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), the Guyana-based CARICOM Secretariat, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), and WTO are co-hosting the workshop.
The organizers said that the workshop would also help to chart a way forward for the implementation of the Agreement and strengthen the capacity of national fisheries and trade Officials to implement the Agreement.
It will also build upon the outcomes of the first technical workshop on Fisheries Subsidies for the Caribbean region held in Trinidad and Tobago in January last year.
“The ongoing second wave of fisheries subsidies negotiations, which seek to develop additional provisions on subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, will also be discussed concerning the recently held 13th WTO Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi,” the organizers said.
They said member states will speak on their internal processes and approaches towards ratification and implementation of the WTO Agreement, including any challenges experienced. International and regional organizations providing technical assistance and capacity-building support will provide details on opportunities available to support countries with implementing the Agreement once it has come into force.
This week’s technical workshop also provides a forum for other regional and international organizations, fisherfolk, donors, non-CARICOM countries, and private sector representatives who would be directly or indirectly impacted by the Subsidies Agreement to be engaged on this critical matter.
“It is expected that after the 2nd Regional Technical Workshop on the Ratification and Implementation of the WTO Fisheries Subsidies Agreement, Caribbean countries will be better equipped to chart the way forward for the ratification and implementation of the Agreement,” the organizers said.
and then 