FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries celebrates 20-year anniversary
Sunday, 2015/10/11 | 06:31:05
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Vigo conference underlines importance of global fisheries management for a sustainable future
Red Mullet on display with the FAO Fishing Zone indicated on the label
FAO 8 October 2015, Vigo, Spain – Twenty years after its birth, FAO’s Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries shared a moment in the limelight with ministers, researchers and leaders in the fisheries industry at the first International Fisheries Stakeholders Forum that opened in Vigo, Spain, today.
"The Code of Conduct has been an unmitigated success, because it captures both the essence of nature conservation and the need for developing countries to grow and prosper," said Arni Mathiesen, FAO Assistant Director-General for Fisheries and Aquaculture speaking at the opening session.
“Many of the fish stocks that are unsustainable today became that way before adoption of the Code in 1995,” he added. “And while actions by the international community since then have halted a further deterioration, I’m convinced we can do more to rebuild our stocks, and must work together on these objectives over the next two decades of the Code.”
Seafood products are among the most widely traded food commodities in the world, totalling some $145 billion per year. Fish is the main source of animal protein for billions of people worldwide and the livelihoods of over 10 percent of the global population depend on capture fishing and aquaculture.
Pressure on the world’s marine resources is likely to increase as the world prepares to feed nine billion people by 2050, making sustainable management of fisheries even more important.
Managing conservation and growth
Since 1995, when it was drafted by 170 countries, the Code of Conduct has set universal standards to guide governments and private actors in conserving and managing the world’s oceans, rivers and lakes.
See more: http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/335898/icode/
At the same time, it recognizes countries’ need for development and the important role a vibrant and growing fisheries sector can play in driving prosperity through blue growth initiatives.
“All stakeholders, including the academic community, civil society and the private sector have unanimously recognized the code of conduct,” said FAO Director General Jose Graziano da Silva, who underlined its role as the basis for blue growth strategies that sustainably use aquatic resources to improve the livelihoods of the most vulnerable. |
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