Regional fisheries organisations and international fisheries governance

Abstract

In this chapter, I discuss the establishment of exclusive economic zones (EEZs) and the changing role of regional fishery organisations in an historical perspective. Considering that there are more than 30 regional fisheries agreements in force, in addition to a number of dead letter agreements, I ask why is there so little regional fisheries management? Substantial ocean areas, predominantly high seas, are not managed by regional fisheries organisations. In the face of the problem of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and the unsustainable status of world fisheries in general, why is this so? It is now almost a decade since the adoption of the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement (hereafter 1995 Agreement) and there is reason to ask, what has been achieved in terms of regional fisheries management. The chapter addresses the steps that regional fisheries management organisations that are managing straddling and highly migratory fish stocks have taken to implement the provisions of the 1995 Agreement. A particular focus of this chapter is on the duty to cooperate through regional fisheries organisations and other regional arrangements in the management of fisheries.