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Belize City, Tuesday, 5 July 2016 (CRFM)—Milton Haughton, the Executive Director of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), met today at the CRFM’s Secretariat in Belize City with Mr. Masaru Honda, Team Leader of the Japan-funded Caribbean Fisheries Co-management Project (CARIFICO) and Chief Advisor in the Fisheries Department in St. Lucia.

“The CRFM welcomes Mr. Honda to Belize to meet with us, and we thank the Government of Japan for their continued commitment and support for the sustainable development of the fisheries sector of the Caribbean region,” Haughton said.

Honda meets with CRFM staff in Belize City

Honda (second, counterclockwise) meets with CRFM Secretariat staff in Belize City

 

Honda, whose ties with the Caribbean go back 17 years, when he worked with a JICA funded Regional Fisheries Project implemented by the Caribbean Fisheries Training and Development Institute (CFTDI) in Trinidad and Tobago, said that he has enjoyed working with the Caribbean to foster the development of co-management arrangements with fishing communities.

Haughton and Honda discussed the region’s progress in implementing the multi-million-dollar CARIFICO project, funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which focuses on improving the co-management of fisheries in the region, in order to improve the socio-economic status and the welfare of fishers and fishing communities.

Haughton and Honda meeting at CRFM Secretariat in Belize City

Haughton (left) and Honda (right) discuss new initiatives under the JICA-funded CARIFICO project

 

They also discussed two new initiatives under the project: (1) the strengthening of co-management of the conch fishery in St. Lucia, and (2) a survey of the socio-economic status of fisheries in the region, using 6 countries in the Eastern Caribbean as pilot sites. The results of the survey will be presented at a regional workshop slated for 2018, at which time the findings of the survey and the outputs of the pilot projects will be the center of deliberations by CRFM Member States.

Haughton said that in Japan, co-management arrangements are well developed, and through the CRFM-JICA partnership, milestones have been achieved in Dominica, Grenada, and Antigua and Barbuda in the sustainable development of pelagic fisheries using fish aggregating devices (FADs).

FAD-construction-in-Grenada

FAD assembly in Grenada

Furthermore, the Government of Japan has provided direct grants to some CRFM Member States for the deployment of mega-FADs, which are larger and more durable, and enable higher production of larger tunas. The support from Japan has helped the region to diversify its fisheries sector while targeting pelagic species in a more cost-effective manner. Fishers are able to save money with the reduced costs of operation, since they can troll for fish at the FADs where target species aggregate.

Haughton said that through the initiative, CRFM and JICA have partnered in promoting co-management through the establishment and management of the FAD fishery with expertise and technology transferred to the region by the Japanese. The CARIFICO Project is also assisting with the development of co-management arrangements for the pot/trap fishery in Antigua and Barbuda, and the queen conch fisheries in Saint Lucia. 

BELIZE CITY, BELIZE, 30 June 2016--The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) joined in the celebration of fishers across the Caribbean on Wednesday, June 29, 2016, and particularly in festivities held in Belize, where the CRFM's headquarters in located, and where June is being observed as Fisherfolk Month for the first time.

Speaking at ceremonies held on Wednesday morning, June 29--marked regionally and internationally as Fisherfolk Day, to recognize three outstanding fishers--Milton Haughton, Executive Director of the CRFM, said: "Fishery and by extension, our fisherfolk, have always been a big part of Caribbean economies. This is why today is such as special day on the calendar of fisherfolk in the region and globally."

Haughton handed over a check for $200 to Cesar Muñoz, a fisherman of Sarteneja Village, Corozal, in northern Belize, who was chosen as Fisher of the Year in Belize for his notable contributions in promoting sustainable fishing practices. Muñoz is the chairman of the Sarteneja Fishermen Association.

The annual Punta Fuego Awards are organized by the Wildlife Conservation Society in Belize, in partnership with the CRFM, the Belize Fisheries Department, the Caribbean Network of Fisherfolk Organisations and The Nature Conservancy.

Guadaloupe Lampella of Riversdale in southern Belize, the sister of last year's Fisher of the Year, Anna Ramirez, was also recognized as an outstanding fisher at the event. So too was Juan Muñoz, a relative of this year’s winning fisher, who also hails from Sarteneja.

"It is a time to reflect upon, acknowledge and recognize the very important contribution that fishermen and fisherwomen make to the social and economic development of Belize and the CARICOM countries," Haughton said.

He noted that for this year's international celebration of fishers, the United Nations Food and Agriculture agreed to focus on “Securing fishers’ rights and livelihoods with the small-scale Fisheries Guidelines.”

"The subject of understanding, securing and respecting the right of small-scale fishers is an important issue. In many countries small-scale fisheries have been marginalized and displaced and find themselves in conflict with a wide variety of interest groups and investors who are competing for access to resources used by fishers," Haughton added.

The CRFM Executive Director emphasized that, "The time has come when we as a region must give more serious attention to the needs of our small-scale fishers, who often work under difficult circumstances and have been making such an important contribution to food and nutrition security, and who provide for their families and communities."

Haughton pledged the continued support of the CRFM for fishers in Belize, as well as its 16 other Member States across the Caribbean.

"We at the CRFM look forward to working closely with the fisherfolk and all other partners to secure the rights and livelihoods of fisheries in Belize and throughout the CARICOM region through the FAO Small-scale Fisheries Guidelines," he said.

In concluding, Haughton acknowledged the hard work of fishers all across the Caribbean, adding that the CRFM "acknowledges, recognizes and commends the strong, hardworking, dedicated fishermen and fishermen and other fishworkers as well as their families."

 

BELIZE CITY, BELIZE, 30 June 2016--The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) joined in the celebration of fishers across the Caribbean on Wednesday, June 29, 2016, and particularly in festivities held in Belize, where the CRFM's headquarters in located, and where June is being observed as Fisherfolk Month for the first time.

Speaking at ceremonies held on Wednesday morning, June 29--marked regionally and internationally as Fisherfolk Day, to recognize three outstanding fishers--Milton Haughton, Executive Director of the CRFM, said: "Fishery and by extension, our fisherfolk, have always been a big part of Caribbean economies. This is why today is such as special day on the calendar of fisherfolk in the region and globally."

Haugnton handed over a check for $200 to Cesar Muñoz, a fisherman of Sarteneja Village, Corozal, in northern Belize, who was chosen as Fisher of the Year in Belize for his notable contributions in promoting sustainable fishing practices.

The annual Punta Fuego Awards are organized by the Wildlife Conservation Society in Belize, in partnership with the CRFM, the Belize Fisheries Department, the Caribbean Network of Fisherfolk Organisations and The Nature Conservancy.

Guadalupe Lampella of Riversdale in southern Belize, the sister of last year's Fisher of the Year, Anna Ramirez, was also recognized as an outstanding fisher at the event. So too was Juan Muñoz, a relative of this year’s winning fisher, who also hails from Sarteneja.

"It is a time to reflect upon, acknowledge and recognize the very important contribution that fishermen and fisherwomen make to the social and economic development of Belize and the CARICOM countries," Haughton said.

He noted that for this year's international celebration of fishers, the United Nations Food and Agriculture agreed to focus on “Securing fishers’ rights and livelihoods with the small-scale Fisheries Guidelines.”

"The subject of understanding, securing and respecting the right of small-scale fishers is an important issue. In many countries small-scale fisheries have been marginalized and displaced and find themselves in conflict with a wide variety of interest groups and investors who are competing for access to resources used by fishers," Haughton added.

The CRFM Executive Director emphasized that, "The time has come when we as a region must give more serious attention to the needs of our small-scale fishers, who often work under difficult circumstances and have been making such an important contribution to food and nutrition security, and who provide for their families and communities."

Haughton pledged the continued support of the CRFM for fishers in Belize, as well as its 16 other Member States across the Caribbean.

"We at the CRFM look forward to working closely with the fisherfolk and all other partners to secure the rights and livelihoods of fisheries in Belize and throughout the CARICOM region through the FAO Small-scale Fisheries Guidelines," he said.

In concluding, Haughton acknowledged the hard work of fishers all across the Caribbean, adding that the CRFM "acknowledges, recognizes and commends the strong, hardworking, dedicated fishermen and fishermen and other fishworkers as well as their families."

BELIZE CITY, BELIZE, 30 June 2016--The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) joined in the celebration of fishers across the Caribbean on Wednesday, June 29, 2016, and particularly in festivities held in Belize, where the CRFM's headquarters in located, and where June is being observed as Fisherfolk Month for the first time.

Speaking at ceremonies held on Wednesday morning, June 29--marked regionally and internationally as Fisherfolk Day, to recognize three outstanding fishers--Milton Haughton, Executive Director of the CRFM, said: "Fishery and by extension, our fisherfolk, have always been a big part of Caribbean economies. This is why today is such as special day on the calendar of fisherfolk in the region and globally."

Haugnton handed over a check for $200 to Cesar Muñoz, a fisherman of Sarteneja Village, Corozal, in northern Belize, who was chosen as Fisher of the Year in Belize for his notable contributions in promoting sustainable fishing practices.

The annual Punta Fuego Awards are organized by the Wildlife Conservation Society in Belize, in partnership with the CRFM, the Belize Fisheries Department, the Caribbean Network of Fisherfolk Organisations and The Nature Conservancy.

Guadalupe Lampella of Riversdale in southern Belize, the sister of last year's Fisher of the Year, Anna Ramirez, was also recognized as an outstanding fisher at the event. So too was Juan Muñoz, a relative of this year’s winning fisher, who also hails from Sarteneja.

"It is a time to reflect upon, acknowledge and recognize the very important contribution that fishermen and fisherwomen make to the social and economic development of Belize and the CARICOM countries," Haughton said.

He noted that for this year's international celebration of fishers, the United Nations Food and Agriculture agreed to focus on “Securing fishers’ rights and livelihoods with the small-scale Fisheries Guidelines.”

"The subject of understanding, securing and respecting the right of small-scale fishers is an important issue. In many countries small-scale fisheries have been marginalized and displaced and find themselves in conflict with a wide variety of interest groups and investors who are competing for access to resources used by fishers," Haughton added.

The CRFM Executive Director emphasized that, "The time has come when we as a region must give more serious attention to the needs of our small-scale fishers, who often work under difficult circumstances and have been making such an important contribution to food and nutrition security, and who provide for their families and communities."

Haughton pledged the continued support of the CRFM for fishers in Belize, as well as its 16 other Member States across the Caribbean.

"We at the CRFM look forward to working closely with the fisherfolk and all other partners to secure the rights and livelihoods of fisheries in Belize and throughout the CARICOM region through the FAO Small-scale Fisheries Guidelines," he said.

In concluding, Haughton acknowledged the hard work of fishers all across the Caribbean, adding that the CRFM "acknowledges, recognizes and commends the strong, hardworking, dedicated fishermen and fishermen and other fishworkers as well as their families."

 

The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) will be hosting the 10th Meeting of its Ministerial Council next Wednesday, in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

The CRFM Ministerial Council, which is comprised of ministers from 17 Member States responsible for fisheries, aquaculture and/or agriculture, is convening for an update on technical activities undertaken by the CRFM, as well as for policy direction and guidance on the way forward, in achieving the sustainable development of fisheries and aquaculture in the Caribbean region.

On the occasion of the meeting, the chairmanship of the Council will be handed over from Grenada to Jamaica.  A vice chair will also be selected.

The outgoing chairman is Roland Bhola, Minister of agriculture, lands, forestry, fisheries and the environment of Grenada.

 

In celebration of Caribbean Fisherfolk Day, which will be observed on June 29 across the region, the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) in collaboration with the United Nations FAO, is making this brochure on the Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines available to fisheries stakeholders across the region.

Speaking at the launch of Fisherfolk Month in Belize City this morning, the CRFM's Executive Director, Milton Haughton, says: "This is the first international policy agreement dedicated to improving the livelihoods of small-scale fishers globally."

Here is an electronic version of the document.

Click the document to navigate in a pop-up screen:

See link below social icons to download a PDF copy.

Friday, 27 May 2016 16:15

CRFM launches cost of fishing study

 

Claudia Stella Beltrán Turriago, the economist who has been engaged by the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) to lead a new study to look at the impacts of rising cost factors of fishing operations, such as labor, fuel, fishing gear, repair and maintenance, and capital, completed the first leg of field work in Belize today.

While in Belize, she had a chance to conduct surveys with fishers from various communities around the country. The Belize Fisheries Department assited with surveys in more remote parts of the country, such as the far north and the far south. It is expected that the Belize survey will have canvassed fishers from as far noth as Chunox, Corozal, to as far south as Punta Gorda, Toledo.

After leaving Belize today, Claudia returns home for a few weeks before moving on to Suriname and Barbados for more fieldwork. Finally, she will move on to St. Kitts and Nevis and to St. Vincent and the Grenadies.

Remote surveys will also be conducted in Guyana, Grenada, Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago.

The consultant told the CRFM that her visit to Belize was "very successful."

After the study is completed, a policy brief will be prepared for action by Caribbean leaders. The brief will highlight the major findings and recommendations, including policy options and strategies to increase efficiency, productivity and sustainability of the fisheries and aquaculture sector, while reducing economic risks.

The beneficiary countries are the 17 states which are members of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism, as well as countries covered by a UN/FAO project on the Sustainable Management of Bycatch in Trawl Fishing in Latin America and the Caribbean (the REBYC-II LAC), funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

 

Belize City, Friday, 27 May 2016 (CRFM)—Officials from the Caribbean Community and the United States advanced talks in Washington last week at the 7th Annual Meeting of the CARICOM-US Trade and Investment Council, on several key concerns affecting trade between the US and the region, chief among then being the treat of a lawsuit by US-based NGOs over the harvesting of queen conch for trade. The threat of suit is of great concern to the region, which exports roughly US$185 million worth of conch meat a year to the US.

In February 2016, WildEarth Guardians and Friends of Animals notified the Secretary of Commerce and the Administrator of NOAA of their intention to sue the Department of Commerce, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Marine Fisheries Service / NOAA Fisheries, and their officers and directors over the Government’s decision back in 2014 not to list the queen conch as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), which was represented at the meeting by its executive director, Milton Haughton, maintained that the petition is unjustified, as it is based on outdated and erroneous information. A listing that the species is endangered would result in an outright ban, while a listing that it is threatened would lead to more stringent export regulations, among other measures.

The NGO which wants to challenge the decision of the US federal authorities is reputed to have a 77% success rate in lawsuits against the US Government. In studying the impact of litigation by the NGO, US researchers, Dr. Ryan M. Yonk of the Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice at the Southern Utah University and Dr. Randy T. Simmons of the Department of Economics and Finance at Utah State University, found that the litigation, which has mostly been over land issues in the US, could jeopardize industries representing over US$3 billion in local economies. However, US authorities have indicated that they will defend their position on the queen conch. CARICOM States will, meanwhile, be monitoring this situation closely.

At the Washington meeting, the parties also discussed US measures to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and their potential impact on our region. A Presidential Task Force was established two years ago to develop recommendations for “a Comprehensive Framework to Combat Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing and Seafood Fraud.”

CARICOM notes that the new measures being introduced to combat IUU fishing and seafood fraud could have significant negative consequences for the export of fish and seafood from CARICOM to the US market, since importers in the USA and by extension exporters from CARICOM countries targeting the US market, would be required to implement administrative systems to certify that fish and fishery products entering the US market are not from IUU sources.

However, the measures being implemented by the United States could also create opportunities for fish and fish products exported from the region, by reducing the occurrence of IUU fishing in our region by third States and unfair competition.

In the recent meeting, CARICOM officials laid out both their concerns and expectations to the US representatives, including the need for support for fish traders and Government Fisheries departments so that they could make the necessary reforms to comply with the new US requirements for international trade.

 

Rainforest Seafoods is a leading Caribbean producer and exporter based in Jamaica, with operations in Belize. It exports safe seafood to the EU. (Photo: Rainforest Seafoods)

 

Belize City, Friday, 27 May 2016 (CRFM)—Caribbean economies are poised to benefit from a region-wide initiative to expand seafood market share, through the implementation of food safety measures to enable countries to get a bigger piece of the global pie, worth an estimated US$130 billion annually. Caribbean countries, including the Bahamas, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, are now capitalizing on a coordinated approach to broaden the gateway to the growing market. CARIFORUM (CARICOM and the Dominican Republic) now exports about US$400 million worth of fish and seafood annually.

Belize and Jamaica are two Caribbean seafood exporters already tapping into markets controlled by the European Union (EU)—a tough market to access because of stringent standards which require that countries have systems in place to ensure that their exports are not only safe for consumption but also free from harmful pests and pathogens.

In the case of Belize, which has traditionally exported shrimp to the EU, it is moving to export conch to that market for the first time in 2016, according to Endhir Sosa, Senior Food Safety Inspector, Belize.

Sosa was among the eighteen professionals from CARIFORUM who recently received management training on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) in Iceland. The training was offered under the capacity-building component of an EU-sponsored project to implement SPS Measures under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) regime. The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) are collaborating to implement the fisheries component of the project.

 

Demystifying SPS

Sosa broke down the meaning of this very technical term, which could just as well be the acronym for ‘safe and profitable seafood’: “In a nutshell, it’s just a series of procedures, of guidelines, of requirements, that one needs to implement to basically prove that what they are producing is safe,” the food safety expert commented.

“Confidence is what is key! It is what everybody seeks when it comes to the purchase and consumption of food products,” he said, adding that, “SPS is one of those routes where you can establish that confidence in your product.”

BAHA monitors seafood processing plants

BAHA monitors seafood processed for trade (Photo: BAHA)

 

Sosa notes that, “Once you have an established SPS system in place and it is vetted and it’s shown to be functional, that will open markets locally, regionally and internationally."

This has been the case for Belize: “When BAHA [the Belize Agricultural Health Authority] first started in 2000, you could count the number of countries we were exporting to on your hand. It wasn’t more than 5 to 7. Today, thanks to SPS, thanks to the confidence that our SPS program has put into our products, not only fish, the markets have increased almost three-fold. Now we have a little over 30 markets,” Sosa said.

 

Building SPS capacity

Chairman of the Caribbean Fisheries Forum, Denzil Roberts, who is also the Chief Fisheries Officer in Guyana, notes that: “The fisheries sector within the CARIFORUM region continues to play an important role in rural development, food and nutrition security, income generation and foreign exchange earnings. However, it must be recognized that there is a paucity of skilled personnel within the region to further develop the sector in keeping with the emerging challenges.”

The intensive two-week training course recently held in Iceland served to help fill this knowledge gap in the Caribbean.

Susan Singh-Renton, the CRFM’s Deputy Executive Director, notes that, “The CRFM/UNU-FTP SPS Management Course has been very successful in achieving its objective of exposing CARIFORUM Fisheries and Agricultural Health and Food Safety experts to the key lessons and best practices of the Icelandic fishing industry in producing safe and wholesome fishery products of an international standard.”

trainees in wrap up

Thor Asgeirsson, Deputy Programme Director at UNU-FTP,  talks with CARIFORUM SPS professionals in wrap-up session (Photo: CRFM)

 

She added that, “At the close of the course, participants reflected on and also documented how they would apply what they had learned to improve fisheries SPS management in their home countries.”

Jeannette Mateo, Director of Fisheries Resources at the Dominican Council for Fisheries and Aquaculture (CODOPESCA) in the Dominican Republic, suggested that nationals in her country, such as biologists, inspectors, fisheries officers and consumer protection agents, should be trained in basic concepts of SPS.

For his part, Roberts hopes that the trainees will immediately begin to impart what they have learned to others in their national networks. Roberts furthermore hopes that trainees will implement internationally recognized safety standards for seafood, thereby safeguarding the health of the local population while ensuring market access to meet global market demands.

Singh-Renton said that the CRFM will also strive to do its part to provide follow-up regional support for improved SPS management for the region's fishing industries, including facilitating continued networking among the course participants.

Gatekeepers fight against food fraud

One of the more frequent but often overlooked problems within the Caribbean is food fraud and mislabeling,” notes Dr. Wintorph Marsden, Senior Veterinary Officer in Jamaica’s Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries.

Marsden said that Jamaica is considered a major transshipment hub for fish and fishery products to the wider Caribbean region, and so the burden is on Jamaica, as a first point of entry, to implement a system of verification of products entering its food chain.

To combat food fraud, it is an absolute necessity to introduce traceability, said Marsden. This can now be done electronically, with modern systems of recording, such as the use barcodes, radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags and other tracking media within the production chain.

In the Dominican Republic, Mateo’s job is to review all the supporting documentation for seafood imports and exports. She has observed, though, that, “Some of these documents might have statements to make the consumers believe that they are getting a high-quality product while they are actually getting products with less quality and deliberate mislabeling.”

An example, she said, is fish from the genus Pangasius, a catfish primarily sourced from the Asian market, which is being sold cheaply in the region and marketed at times as “grouper”—not only at supermarkets but also at some restaurants.

 

Pangasius sometimes passed off as grouper in Caribbean

Vietnam catfish often passed off as grouper in the Caribbean (Photo: VASEP)

 

“While in Iceland, I learned that deliberate mislabeling of food, the substitution of products with cheaper alternatives, and false statements about the origin of foods, are all food fraud,” Mateo said.

“This is relevant to the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean, where imported fish are in some cases marketed at lower prices than the local ones, not only due to the lower production cost of fish products such as tilapia and Pangasius (catfish – sold as ‘basa’ or ‘swai’) in comparison with those produced in the country, but also because of unfair practices in trade,” Mateo said.

She said that as a result of the Iceland training, the Dominican Republic is now in the final stage of building an improved national SPS system for fishery and aquaculture products which was initiated with the support of the government of Chile.

 

Safe and healthy food also vital at home

 

local seafood

Buyers opt for local snapper or imported seafood from the same freezer at a Belize supermarket (Photo: CRFM)

 

Whereas the move to implement SPS measures was originally focused on export trade, regional experts also indicate that they are vital to food safety and health even within our region.

“The Caribbean is known to be a huge importer of food products,” Sosa noted. “We have to look after our population, we have to look after the health of our people, we have to look after the health of our environment and our agricultural products; and thus SPS—although at this point it is mostly the industrialized countries that are pushing it, that are requiring it—should be really and truly across the board.”

Science-based risk assessment and risk analysis of imports are also key in protecting vital agriculture and fisheries industries.

“We have been mandated with the task of being the gatekeepers when it comes to food safety and agricultural health and we take that responsibility very seriously. Sometimes the public will get angry with us, because they truly don’t understand why we are doing this. ‘Why can’t I bring this across the border?’ But the realization is that if a disease [is introduced], it could potentially destroy an entire industry—whether it be, for example, bringing across poultry with avian influenza, or bringing in diseased shrimp—it could wipe out an entire multi-million-dollar industry,” Sosa warned.

 

Positioning small producers for export

 

Grenada fish bacon for export

 

Southern Fishermen's Cooperative in Grenada adds value to fish to produce smoked bacon for export to regional and international markets (Photo: CRFM)

 

Sosa noted that SPS measures were initially geared towards industrial markets but now they are encouraging small producers to position themselves for export by implementing SPS Measures.

“They might not have the finance to construct an elaborate facility, but we can start with the basics,” said Sosa, pointing to “good manufacturing practices and the sanitation standard operating procedures,” which, he said, would build confidence in products from even small producers.

More importantly, he said, implementing SPS measures is the first step that producers will need to make to even think about trading on the world market.

 

 

You may access the VIMEO version of the video here.

Belize City, Tuesday, 17 May 2016 (CRFM)— Peter A. Murray, Programme Manager for Fisheries Management and Development at the Secretariat of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), represented the region at an international seminar on Oceans Economy and Trade: Sustainable Fisheries, Transport and Tourism, held in Geneva from 10- 12 May 2016.

Murray, who was one of over seventy registered participants drawn from all three sectors, presented a paper on the linkages between fisheries, tourism and transport in the Caribbean. Murray’s paper also highlighted the results of a recently completed suite of case studies on the linkages between fisheries and tourism in CRFM Member Countries.

The presentation furthermore recognised the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy as a directional tool to encourage further development of those linkages.

The international seminar on Oceans Economy and Trade aimed to increase the understanding of the concept of oceans economy and its close link with trade. It also aimed to examine how international trade in goods and services (as mediated by internationally agreed rules, regulations and trade policies) can better support the advancement of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) exclusively dedicated to the oceans: SDG 14, and other related goals. SDG 14 commits UN Member States “to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.”

Another objective of the seminar was to underscore the strong inter-sectoral interdependencies of ocean-based sectors and related implications for strategically coordinated policies.

The oceans economy is touted as a vehicle for “greener” or more sustainable and inclusive economic paths on the marine and coastal front. Trade in marine products and services can create opportunities for economic growth, export diversification and new investments. Major trade sectors where opportunities already exist or could be expanded in the near future include sustainable fishing and aquaculture, sustainable and resilient marine transport and logistical services, and linkages with maritime and coastal tourism.

 

 

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