Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments

The General Assembly,

PP1.     Reaffirming its resolutions 46/215 of 20 December 1991, 49/116 and 49/118 of 19 December 1994, 50/25 of 5 December 1995 and 57/142 of 12 December 2002, as well as other resolutions on large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing, unauthorized fishing in zones of national jurisdiction and on the high seas, fisheries by-catch and discards, and other developments, and its resolutions 56/13 of 28 November 2001 and 57/143 of 12 December 2002 on the Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks (“the Agreement”), 58/14 of 24 November 2003, 59/25 of 29 November 2004 and 60/31 of 29 November 2005 on Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments,

PP2.     Recalling the relevant provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (“the Convention”), and bearing in mind the relationship between the Convention and the Agreement,

PP3.     Recognizing that, in accordance with the Convention, the Agreement sets forth provisions concerning the conservation and management of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, including provisions on compliance and enforcement by the flag State and subregional and regional cooperation in enforcement, binding dispute settlement and the rights and obligations of States in authorizing the use of vessels flying their flags for fishing on the high seas, and specific provisions to address the requirements of developing States in relation to conservation and management of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks and development of fisheries for such stocks, 

PP4.     Welcoming the fact that a growing number of States, and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement, as well as regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, have taken measures, as appropriate, towards the implementation of the provisions of the Agreement,

PP5.     Welcoming the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and its Committee of Fisheries and the Ministerial Declaration in 2005 which calls for effective implementation of the various instruments already developed to ensure responsible fisheries, and recognizing that the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (“the Code”) and its associated international plans of action set out principles and global standards of behaviour for responsible practices for conservation of fisheries resources and management and development of fisheries,
 
PP6.     Noting with concern that effective management of marine capture fisheries has been made difficult in some areas by unreliable information and data caused by unreported and misreported fish catch and fishing effort and this lack of accurate data contributes to overfishing in some areas, and therefore welcoming the adoption of the Strategy for Improving Information on Status and Trends of Capture Fisheries and the development of the Fisheries Resources Monitoring System (FIRMS) initiative by the FAO to improve knowledge and understanding of fishery status and trends,

PP7.     Recognizing the significant contribution of sustainable fisheries to food security, income and wealth for present and future generations, 

PP8.     Recognizing also the urgent need for action at all levels to ensure the long-term sustainable use and management of fisheries resources through the wide application of the precautionary approach,

PP9.     Deploring the fact that fish stocks, including straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, in many parts of the world are overfished or subject to sparsely regulated and heavy fishing efforts, as a result of, inter alia, illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, inadequate flag State control and enforcement, including monitoring, control and surveillance measures (MCS), inadequate regulatory measures, harmful fisheries subsidies and overcapacity,

PP10.   Particularly concerned that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing constitutes a serious threat to fish stocks and marine habitats and ecosystems, to the detriment of sustainable fisheries as well as the food security and the economies of many States, particularly developing States,

PP11.   Recognizing the duty provided in the Convention, the Agreement to Promote Compliance with International Conservation and Management Measures by Fishing Vessels on the High Seas (“the Compliance Agreement”), the Agreement and the Code for flag States to exercise effective control over fishing vessels flying their flag, and vessels flying their flag which provide support to fishing vessels, to ensure that the activities of such fishing and support vessels do not undermine the effectiveness of conservation and management measures taken in accordance with international law and adopted at the national, subregional, regional or global levels,

PP12.   Noting the obligation of all States, pursuant to the provisions of the Convention, to cooperate in the conservation and management of living marine resources, and recognizing the importance of coordination and cooperation at the global, regional, subregional as well as national levels in the areas, inter alia, of data collection, information-sharing, capacity-building and training for the conservation, management and sustainable development of marine living resources,

PP13. Noting with appreciation the report of the Review Conference on the Agreement (“the Review Conference”), held in New York from 22 to 26 May 2006, and welcoming the adoption of the recommendations therein, which assessed the effectiveness of the Agreement in securing the conservation and management of straddling and highly migratory fish stocks by reviewing and assessing the adequacy of its provisions and proposed means of strengthening the substance and methods of implementation of those provisions in order better to address any continuing problems in the conservation and management of those stocks, and also noting that the Conference agreed that there is a compelling need for all States and subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of straddling and highly migratory fish stocks,

PP14.   Noting with satisfaction that the Review Conference agreed to continue the informal consultations of States Parties to the Agreement and to keep the Agreement under review through the resumption of the Conference at a date not later than 2011, to be agreed at a future informal consultation of States Parties to the Agreement,

PP15.   Calling attention to the need for more work to develop port State measures and schemes, and the critical need for cooperation with developing States to build their capacity in this regard,

PP16.   Concerned that marine pollution from all sources, including vessels and in particular land-based sources, constitutes a serious threat to human health and safety, endangers fish stocks, marine biodiversity and marine habitats and has significant costs to local and national economies,

PP17.   Recognizing that marine debris is a global transboundary pollution problem and that due to the many different types and sources of marine debris different approaches to their prevention and removal are necessary,

PP18.   Noting that the contribution of sustainable aquaculture to global fish supplies continues to respond to opportunities in developing countries to enhance local food security and poverty alleviation, and together with efforts of other aquaculture producing countries will make a significant contribution to meeting future demands in fish consumption, bearing in mind article 9 of the Code,

PP19.   Calling attention to the circumstances affecting fisheries in many developing States, in particular African States and small island developing States, and recognizing the urgent need for capacity-building, including transfer of marine technology and in particular fisheries-related technology, to enhance the ability of such States to meet their obligations and exercise their rights under international instruments, in order to realize the benefits from fisheries resources,

PP20.   Recognizing the need for appropriate measures to minimize waste, discards, loss of fishing gear, and other factors, which adversely affect fish stocks,

PP21.   Recognizing also the importance of applying ecosystem approaches to oceans management and the need to integrate such approaches into fisheries conservation and management; and, in this regard, welcoming the report of the Seventh Meeting of the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea, held from 12 to 16 June 2006 in New York,

PP22.   Recognizing further the economic and cultural importance of sharks in many countries, the biological importance of sharks in the marine ecosystem, the vulnerability of certain shark species to over-exploitation, some of which are threatened with extinction, and the need for measures to promote the long-term sustainability of shark populations and fisheries, and the relevance of the 1999 FAO International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks in providing development guidance of such measures,

PP23.   Reaffirming its support for the initiative of the FAO and relevant regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and arrangements on the conservation and management of sharks, while noting with concern that only a small number of countries have implemented the 1999 FAO International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks,

PP24.   Taking note with appreciation of the report of the Secretary-General on “The Impacts of Fishing on Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems: Actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to give effect to paragraphs 66-69 of General Assembly resolution 59/25 on sustainable fisheries, regarding the impacts of fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems”, in particular its useful role in gathering and disseminating information on this issue,

PP25.   Expressing concern that the practice of large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing remains a threat to marine living resources, although the incidence of this practice has continued to be low in most regions of the world’s oceans and seas,

PP26.   Emphasizing that efforts should be made to ensure that the implementation of resolution 46/215 in some parts of the world does not result in the transfer to other parts of the world of drift-nets that contravene the resolution,

PP27.   Expressing concern over reports of continued losses of seabirds, particularly albatrosses and petrels, as well as other marine species, including sharks, fin-fish species and marine turtles, as a result of incidental mortality in fishing operations, particularly longline fishing, and other activities, while recognizing considerable efforts to reduce by-catch in longline fishing by States and through various regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements,

I
Achieving sustainable fisheries

OP1.    Reaffirms the importance it attaches to the long-term conservation, management and sustainable use of the marine living resources of the world’s oceans and seas and the obligations of States to cooperate to this end, in accordance with international law, as reflected in the relevant provisions of the Convention, in particular the provisions on cooperation set out in Part V and Part VII, section 2, of the Convention, and where applicable, the Agreement;

OP2.    Encourages States to give due priority to the implementation of the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit of Sustainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”), in relation to achieving sustainable fisheries;

OP3.    Emphasizes the obligations of flag States to discharge their responsibilities, in accordance with the Convention and the Agreement, to ensure compliance by vessels flying their flag with the conservation and management measures adopted and in force with respect to fisheries resources on the high seas;

OP4.    Calls upon all States that have not done so, in order to achieve the goal of universal participation, to become parties to the Convention, which sets out the legal framework within which all activities in the oceans and seas must be carried out, taking into account the relationship between the Convention and the Agreement;

OP5.    Calls upon all States, directly or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to apply widely, in accordance with international law and the Code, the precautionary approach and an ecosystem approach to the conservation, management and exploitation of fish stocks, including straddling fish stocks, highly migratory fish stocks, and discrete high seas fish stocks, and also calls upon States parties to the Agreement to implement fully the provisions of article 6 of the Agreement as a matter of priority;

OP6.    Encourages States to increase their reliance on scientific advice in developing, adopting and implementing conservation and management measures, and to increase their efforts to promote science for conservation and management measures that apply, in accordance with international law, the precautionary approach and an ecosystem approach to fisheries management, enhancing understanding of ecosystem approaches, in order to ensure the long-term conservation and sustainable use of marine living resources, and, in this regard, encourages the implementation of the FAO International Strategy for Improving Information on Status and Trends of Capture Fisheries as a framework for the improvement and understanding of fishery status and trends;

OP7.    Encourages also States to apply the precautionary approach and an ecosystem approach in adopting and implementing conservation and management measures addressing, inter alia, by-catch, pollution, overfishing, and protecting habitats of specific concern, taking into account existing guidelines developed by the FAO;

OP8.    Calls upon States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to collect and, where appropriate, report to FAO required catch and effort data, and fishery-related information, in a complete, accurate and timely way, including for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks within and beyond areas under national jurisdiction, discrete high seas fish stocks, and by-catch and discards; and, where they do not exist, establish processes to strengthen data collection and reporting by members of regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, including through regular reviews of member compliance with such obligations, and when such obligations are not met, require the member concerned to rectify the problem, including through the preparation of plans of action with timelines; 

OP9.    Invites States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to cooperate with FAO in the implementation and further development of the Fisheries Resources Monitoring System (FIRMS) initiative;

OP10. Urges States, including those working through subregional or regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to implement fully the International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks , notably through the collection of scientific data regarding shark catches and the adoption of conservation and management measures, particularly where shark catches from directed and non directed fisheries have a significant impact on vulnerable or threatened shark stocks, in order to ensure the conservation and management of sharks and their long-term sustainable use, including by banning directed shark fisheries conducted solely for the purpose of harvesting shark fins and by taking measures for other fisheries to minimize waste and discards from shark catches, and to encourage the full use of dead sharks;

OP11.  Urges States to eliminate barriers to trade in fish and fisheries products which are not consistent with their rights and obligations under the World Trade Organization agreements, taking into account the importance of the trade in fish and fisheries products, particularly for developing countries;
 
OP12.  Urges also States and relevant international and national organizations to provide for participation of small-scale fishery stakeholders in related policy development and fisheries management strategies in order to achieve long term sustainability for such fisheries, consistent with the duty to ensure the proper conservation and management of fisheries resources;

II
Implementation of the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks

OP13.  Calls upon all States, and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement, that have not done so to ratify or accede to the Agreement and in the interim to consider applying it provisionally;

OP14.  Calls upon further States parties to the Agreement to harmonize, as a matter of priority, their national legislation with the provisions of the Agreement, and to ensure that the provisions of the Agreement are effectively implemented into regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements of which they are a member;

OP15.  Emphasizes the importance of those provisions of the Agreement relating to bilateral, regional and subregional cooperation in enforcement, and urges continued efforts in this regard;

OP16.  Calls upon all States to ensure that their vessels comply with the conservation and management measures that have been adopted by regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in accordance with relevant provisions of the Convention and of the Agreement;

OP17.  Urges States parties to the Agreement, in accordance with article 21, paragraph 4, thereof to inform, either directly or through the relevant regional or subregional fisheries management organization or arrangement, all States whose vessels fish on the high seas in the same region or subregion of the form of identification issued by those States parties to officials duly authorized to carry out boarding and inspection functions in accordance with articles 21 and 22 of the Agreement;

OP18.  Also urges States parties to the Agreement, in accordance with article 21, paragraph 4, to designate an appropriate authority to receive notifications pursuant to article 21 and to give due publicity to such designation through the relevant subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement;

OP19.  Calls upon States individually and, as appropriate, through regional and sub-regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements with competence over discrete high seas fish stocks, to adopt the necessary measures to ensure the long-term conservation, management and sustainable use of such stocks in accordance with the Convention and consistent with the general principles set forth in the Agreement;

OP20.  Invites States and international financial institutions and organizations of the United Nations system to provide assistance according to Part VII of the Agreement, including, if appropriate, the development of special financial mechanisms or instruments to assist developing States, in particular the least developed among them and small island developing States, to enable them to develop their national capacity to exploit fishery resources, including developing their domestically flagged fishing fleet, value-added processing and the expansion of their economic base in the fishing industry, consistent with the duty to ensure the proper conservation and management of fisheries resources;
                                             
OP21.     Invites further States to assist developing States in enhancing their participation in regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, including through facilitating access to fisheries for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, in accordance with article 25, paragraph 1(b) of the Agreement, taking into account the need to ensure that such access benefits the developing States concerned and their nationals;

OP22.  Notes with satisfaction that the Assistance Fund under Part VII of the Agreement has begun to operate and consider applications for assistance by developing States Parties to the Agreement and encourages States, intergovernmental organizations, international financial institutions, national institutions, non-governmental organizations, as well as natural and juridical persons to make voluntary financial contributions to the Fund;

OP23.  Requests that the FAO and the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea further publicize the availability of assistance through the Part VII Fund, and solicit views from developing States parties to the Agreement regarding the application and award procedures of the Part VII fund, and consider changes where necessary to improve the process;

OP24   Encourages States, individually and, as appropriate, through regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to implement the recommendations of the Review Conference;

OP25. Recalls paragraph 6 of resolution 56/13, and requests the Secretary-General to convene in 2007, in accordance with past practice, a sixth round of informal consultations of States parties to the Agreement, for the purposes and objectives of considering the national, regional, subregional and global implementation of the Agreement, as well as considering initial preparatory steps for the resumption of the Review Conference convened by the Secretary-General pursuant to article 36 of the Agreement, and making any appropriate recommendation to the General Assembly;

OP26.  Requests the Secretary-General to invite States, and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2(b), of the Agreement, not party to the Agreement, as well as the United Nations Development Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and other specialized agencies, the Commission on Sustainable Development, the World Bank, the Global Environment Facility, and other relevant international financial institutions, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, other fisheries bodies, other relevant inter-governmental bodies and relevant non-government organizations in accordance with past practice to attend the sixth round of informal consultations of States parties to the Agreement as observers;

OP27.  Requests the FAO to initiate arrangements with States for the collection and dissemination of data on fishing in the high seas by vessels flying their flag at the subregional and regional level where none exist;

OP28.     Requests the FAO to revise its global fisheries statistics database to provide information on straddling fish stocks, highly migratory fish stocks and discrete high seas fish stocks on the basis of where the catch is taken;

III
Related fisheries instruments

OP29.  Emphasizes the importance of the effective implementation of the provisions of the Compliance Agreement, and urges continued efforts in this regard;

OP30.  Calls upon all States and other entities referred to in article X, paragraph 1, of the Compliance Agreement that have not yet become parties to that Agreement to do so as a matter of priority and, in the interim, to consider applying it provisionally;

OP31.  UrgesStates and subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to implement and promote the application of the Code within their areas of competence;

OP32.  Also urges States to develop and implement, as a matter of priority, national and, as appropriate, regional plans of action to put into effect the international plans of action of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations;

IV

Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing

OP33.  Emphasizes once again its serious concern that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing remains one of the greatest threats to marine ecosystems and continues to have serious and major implications for the conservation and management of ocean resources, and renews its call upon States to comply fully with all existing obligations and to combat such fishing and urgently to take all necessary steps to implement the International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing of the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations;

OP34.  Urges States to exercise effective control over their nationals, including beneficial owners, and vessels flying their flag in order to prevent and deter them from engaging in or supporting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities, and to facilitate mutual assistance to ensure that such actions can be investigated and proper sanctions imposed

OP35.  Urges States to take effective measures, at the national, regional and global levels, to deter the activities, including illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, of any vessel which undermines conservation and management measures that have been adopted by regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in accordance with international law;

OP36.  Calls upon States not to permit vessels flying their flag to engage in fishing on the high seas or in areas under the national jurisdiction of other States, unless duly authorized by the authorities of the States concerned and in accordance with the conditions set out in the authorization, and to take specific measures, including deterring the reflagging of vessels by their nationals, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention, the Agreement and the Compliance Agreement, to control fishing operations by vessels flying their flag;

OP37.  Reaffirms the need to strengthen, where necessary, the international legal framework for intergovernmental cooperation, in particular at the subregional and regional levels, in the management of fish stocks and in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, in a manner consistent with international law, and for States and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement to collaborate in efforts to address these types of fishing activities, including, inter alia, the development and implementation of vessel monitoring systems and the listing of vessels in order to prevent illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing activities and, where appropriate and consistent with international law, trade monitoring schemes, including to collect global catch data, through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements;

OP38.  Calls upon States to take all measures consistent with international law necessary to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities, such as developing measures consistent with national law to prohibit vessels flying their flag from supporting vessels engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities, including those listed by regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements;

OP39. Calls upon States to take all necessary measures consistent with international law, without prejudice to reasons of force majure or distress, including the prohibition for vessels to access their ports followed by a report to the flag State concerned, when there is clear evidence that they are or have been engaged in or supported illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, or when they refuse to give information either on the origin of the catch or on the authorization under which the catch has been made;

OP40.  Urges further international action to eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing by vessels flying “flags of convenience” as well as to require that a “genuine link“ be established between States and fishing vessels flying their flags, and calls upon States to implement the Ministerial Declaration on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, adopted on 12 March 2005, as a matter of priority;

OP41.  Urges States individually and collectively through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to cooperate to clarify the role of the “genuine link” in relation to the duty of States to exercise effective control over fishing vessels flying their flag and to develop appropriate processes to assess performance of States with respect to implementing the obligations regarding fishing vessels flying their flag set out in relevant international instruments;

OP42.  Recognizes the need for enhanced port State controls to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, urges States to cooperate, in particular at the regional level and through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to adopt all necessary port measures, consistent with international law taking into account article 23 of the Agreement, particularly those identified in the 2005 FAO Model Scheme on Port State Measures to Combat Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing, and to promote the development and application of minimum standards at the regional level;

OP43.  Encourages States to initiate, as soon as possible, a process within the FAO to develop, as appropriate, a legally binding instrument on minimum standards for port State measures, building on the FAO Model Scheme on Port State Measures to Combat Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing and the FAO International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing;

OP44.  Encourages States with respect to vessels flying their flag, and port States, to make every effort to share data on landings and catch-quotas, and in this regard encourages regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements to consider developing open databases containing such data for the purpose of enhancing the effectiveness of fisheries management;

OP45.  Calls upon States to take all necessary measures to ensure that vessels flying their flag do not engage in trans-shipment of fish caught by fishing vessels engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing; 

OP46. Urges States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to adopt and implement internationally agreed market-related measures in accordance with international law, including principles, rights and obligations established in WTO agreements, as called for in the FAO International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing;

V
Monitoring, Control and Surveillance and Compliance and Enforcement

OP47.  Calls upon States in accordance with international law to strengthen implementation of, or where they do not exist, adopt comprehensive monitoring, control and surveillance measures and compliance and enforcement schemes individually and within those regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in which they participate in order to provide an appropriate framework for promoting compliance with agreed conservation and management measures, and further urges enhanced coordination among all relevant States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in these efforts;

OP48.  Encourages furtherwork by competent international organizations, including FAO and subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to develop guidelines on flag State control of fishing vessels;

OP49.  Urges States, individually and through relevant regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to establish mandatory vessel monitoring, control and surveillance systems, in particular to require that vessel monitoring systems be carried by all vessels fishing on the high seas as soon as practicable, and in the case of large-scale fishing vessels no later than December 2008, and share information on fisheries enforcement matters, 

OP50.  Calls upon States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to strengthen or establish, consistent with national and international law,  positive or negative lists of vessels fishing within the areas covered by relevant regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in order to verify compliance with conservation and management measures and identify products from illegal, unreported and unregulated catches, and encourages improved coordination among all parties and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to share and use this information, taking into account the forms of cooperation with developing States as set out in article 25 of the Agreement;

OP51. Requests States and relevant international bodies to develop in accordance with international law more effective measures to trace fish and fishery products to enable importing States to identify fish or fisheries products caught in a manner that undermines international conservation and management measures agreed in accordance with international law, taking into account the special requirements of developing States and the forms of cooperation with developing States as set out in article 25 of the Agreement, and at the same time to recognize the importance of market access, in accordance with provisions 11.2.4, 11.2.5 and 11.2.6 of the Code, for fish and fisheries products caught in a manner that is in conformity with such international measures;

OP52.  Encourages States to establish and undertake cooperative surveillance and enforcement activities in accordance with international law to strengthen and enhance efforts to ensure compliance with conservation and management measures, and prevent and deter illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing;

OP53.  Urges States individually and through regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements to develop and adopt effective measures to regulate trans-shipment, in particular at-sea trans-shipment, in order to, inter alia, monitor compliance, collect and verify fisheries data, and to prevent and suppress illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing activities in accordance with international law; and, in parallel, encourage and support FAO in studying the current practices of trans-shipment as it relates to fishing operations for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks and produce a set of guidelines for this purpose;

OP54.  Encourages States to join and actively participate in the existing voluntary International Monitoring, Control and Surveillance Network for Fisheries-Related Activities and to consider supporting, when appropriate, transformation of the Network in accordance with international law into an international unit with dedicated resources to further assist MCS Network Members, taking into account the forms of cooperation with developing States as set out in article 25 of the Agreement;

OP55.  Notes with satisfaction the completion of the First Global Fisheries Enforcement Training Conference held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia hosted by the Government of Malaysia in cooperation with the MCS Network and the FAO FishCode Program and encourages widespread participation in the upcoming Second Global Fisheries Enforcement Training Conference to be held in Trondheim, Norway in August 2008 sponsored by the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries in conjunction with MCS Network;

OP56.  Encourages States to cooperate in the development of a comprehensive global record within FAO of fishing vessels, including refrigerated transport vessels and supply vessels, that incorporates available information on beneficial ownership, subject to confidentiality requirements in accordance with national law, as called for in the FAO Ministerial Declaration on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing adopted on 12 March 2005; 

VI

Fishing overcapacity

OP57.  Calls upon States to commit to urgently reduce the capacity of the world’s fishing fleets to levels commensurate with the sustainability of fish stocks, through the establishment of target levels and plans or other appropriate mechanisms for ongoing capacity assessment, while avoiding the transfer of fishing capacity to other fisheries or areas, in a manner that undermines the sustainable management of fish stocks, including, inter alia, those areas where fish stocks are overexploited or in a depleted condition, and recognizing in this context the legitimate rights of developing States to develop their fisheries for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks consistent with article 25 of the Agreement, article 5 of the Code of Conduct, and paragraph 10 of the International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity;

OP58.  Urges States to eliminate subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and to fishing overcapacity, while completing the efforts undertaken at the World Trade Organization in accordance with the Doha Declaration to clarify and improve its disciplines on fisheries subsidies, taking into account the importance of this sector, including small-scale and artisanal fisheries and aquaculture, to developing countries;

VII
Large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing

OP59.  Reaffirms the importance it attaches to continued compliance with its resolution 46/215 and other subsequent resolutions on large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing, and urges States and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement to enforce fully the measures recommended in those resolutions;

VIII
Fisheries by-catch and discards

OP60.  Urges States, regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and other relevant international organizations that have not done so to take action to reduce or eliminate by-catch, catch by lost or abandoned gear, fish discards and post-harvest losses, including juvenile fish, consistent with international law and relevant international instruments, including the Code, and in particular to consider measures including, as appropriate, technical measures related to fish size, mesh size or gear, discards, closed seasons and areas and zones reserved for selected fisheries, particularly artisanal fisheries, the establishment of mechanisms for communicating information on areas of high concentration of juvenile fish, taking into account the importance of ensuring confidentiality of such information, and support for studies and research that will reduce or eliminate bycatch of juvenile fish;

OP61.  Encourages States and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement to give due consideration to participation, as appropriate, in regional and subregional instruments and organizations with mandates to conserve non-target species taken incidentally in fishing operations;

OP62.  Requests States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to urgently implement, as appropriate, the measures recommended in the FAO Guidelines to Reduce Sea Turtle Mortality in Fishing Operations and the International Plan of Action for Reducing Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Longline Fisheries in order to prevent the decline of sea turtles and seabird populations by reducing bycatch and increasing post-release survival in their fisheries, including through research and development of gear and bait alternatives, promoting the use of available bycatch mitigation technology, and promotion and strengthening of data collection programs to obtain standardized information to develop reliable estimates of the bycatch of these species;

IX
Subregional and regional cooperation

OP63.  Urges coastal States and States fishing on the high seas, in accordance with the Convention and the Agreement, to pursue cooperation in relation to straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, either directly or through appropriate subregional or regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to ensure the effective conservation and management of such stocks;

OP64.  Urges States fishing for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks on the high seas, and relevant coastal States, where a subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement has the competence to establish conservation and management measures for such stocks, to give effect to their duty to cooperate by becoming members of such an organization or participants in such an arrangement, or by agreeing to apply the conservation and management measures established by such an organization or arrangement , or to otherwise ensure that no vessel flying their flag be authorized to access the fisheries resources to which regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements or conservation and management measures established by such organizations or arrangements apply;

OP65.  Invites, in this regard, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to ensure that all States having a real interest in the fisheries concerned may become members of such organizations or participants in such arrangements, in accordance with the Convention and the Agreement;

OP66.  Encourages relevant coastal States and States fishing on the high seas for
a straddling fish stock or a highly migratory fish stock, where there is no subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement to establish conservation and management measures for such stock, to cooperate to establish such an organization or enter into another appropriate arrangement to ensure the conservation and management of such stocks, and to participate in the work of the organization or arrangement;

OP67.  Welcomes the adoption of conservation measures by the South East Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (SEAFO) at its third annual meeting on 4 October 2006, including an interim prohibition of fishing activities in ten marine areas with prominent seamounts, and urges all signatory States and other States whose vessels fish within the SEAFO Convention area for fishery resources covered by that Convention to become parties as a matter of priority and, in the interim, ensure that vessels flying their flags fully comply with the measures adopted;

OP68.  Welcomes the adoption of the South Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement in Rome on 7 July 2006, encourages signatory States and States having a real interest to become Parties to that Agreement, and urges those States to agree on and implement interim measures to ensure the conservation and management of the fisheries resources and their marine ecosystems and habitats in the area to which that Agreement applies until such time as that Agreement enters into force;

OP69.  Welcomes also the initiation and progress of negotiations to establish regional and subregional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in several fisheries, in particular in the South Pacific and Northwest Pacific, encourages States having real interest to participate in such negotiations, urges participants to expedite those negotiations and to apply provisions of the Convention and the Agreement to their work, and further urges participants to agree on and implement interim conservation and management measures until such regional and subregional fisheries management organizations or arrangements are established;

OP70.  Urges further efforts by regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, as a matter of priority, in accordance with international law, to strengthen and modernize their mandates and the measures adopted by such organizations or arrangements, to implement modern approaches to fisheries management as reflected in the Agreement and other relevant international instruments relying on the best scientific information available and application of the precautionary approach, and incorporating an ecosystem approach to fisheries management and biodiversity considerations, where these aspects are lacking, to ensure that they effectively contribute to long term conservation and management and sustainable use of marine living resources;  

OP71.  Urges States to strengthen and enhance cooperation among existing and developing regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in which they participate, including increased communication and further coordination of measures and as such encourages wide participation in the joint tuna regional fisheries management organization and arrangement meeting that will be hosted by Japan in 2007, and encourages members of other existing regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements and participants in establishing new regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements to hold similar consultations;

OP72.  Urges regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to improve transparency and to ensure that their decision-making processes are fair and transparent, rely on best scientific information available, incorporate the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches, address participatory rights, including through, inter alia, the development of transparent criteria for allocating fishing opportunities which reflects, where appropriate, the relevant provisions of the Agreement, taking due account, inter alia, of the status of the relevant stocks and the respective interests in the fishery, and strengthen integration, coordination and cooperation with other relevant fisheries organizations, regional seas arrangements and other relevant international organizations;

OP73.  Urges States through their participation in regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to undertake, on an urgent basis, performance reviews of those regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, either initiated by the organization or arrangement themselves or with external partners, including in cooperation with the FAO, using transparent criteria based on the provisions of the Agreement and other relevant instruments, including the best practices of regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements; and further encourages that such performance reviews include some element of independent evaluation and that the results be made publicly available, noting that the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) has completed a performance review;

OP74.  Urges States to cooperate to develop best practice guidelines for regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and to apply, to the extent possible, those guidelines to organizations and arrangements in which they participate;

OP75.  Encourages the development of regional guidelines for States to use in establishing sanctions, for non-compliance by vessels flying their flag and by their nationals to be applied in accordance with national law, that are adequate in severity to effectively secure compliance, deter further violations and deprive offenders of the benefits deriving from their illegal activities, as well as evaluating their systems of sanctions to ensure that they are effective in securing compliance and deterring violations; 

X
Responsible fisheries in the marine ecosystem

OP76.  Encourages States to apply by 2010 the ecosystem approach, notes the Reykjavik Declaration on Responsible Fisheries in the Marine Ecosystem and decision VII/11 and other relevant decisions of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, notes the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations related to guidelines for the implementation of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management, and also notes the importance to this approach of relevant provisions of the Agreement and the Code;

OP77.  Encourages States, individually or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and other relevant international organizations, to work to ensure that fisheries and other ecosystem data collection is performed in a coordinated and integrated manner, facilitating incorporation into global observation initiatives, where appropriate;

OP78.  Also encourages States to increase scientific research in accordance with international law on the marine ecosystem;

OP79.  Calls upon States, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and other specialized agencies of the United Nations, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, where appropriate, and other appropriate intergovernmental bodies, to cooperate in achieving sustainable aquaculture, including through information exchange, developing equivalent standards on such issues as aquatic animal health and human health and safety concerns, assessing the potential positive and negative impacts of
aquaculture, including socio-economics, on the marine and coastal environment, including biodiversity, and adopting relevant methods and techniques to minimize and mitigate adverse effects;

OP80.  Calls upon States to take action immediately, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, and consistent with the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches, to sustainably manage fish stocks and protect vulnerable marine ecosystems, including seamounts, hydrothermal vents and cold water corals, from destructive fishing practices, recognizing the immense importance and value of deep sea ecosystems and the biodiversity they contain;

OP81.  Reaffirms the importance it attaches to paragraphs 66 to 69 of its resolution 59/25 concerning the impacts of fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems;

OP82.  Welcomes the important progress made by States and regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements with the competence to regulate bottom fisheries to give effect to paragraphs 66 to 69 of its resolution 59/25, to address the impacts of fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems, including through initiating negotiations to establish new regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, but on the basis of the review called for in paragraph 71 of its resolution 59/25 recognizes that additional actions are urgently needed;

OP83.  Calls upon regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements with the competence to regulate bottom fisheries to adopt and implement measures, in accordance with the precautionary approach, ecosystem approaches and international law, for their respective regulatory areas as a matter of priority, but not later than December 31, 2008:

A.To assess, on the basis of the best available scientific information, whether individual bottom fishing activities would have significant adverse impacts on vulnerable marine ecosystems, and to ensure that if it is assessed that these activities would have significant adverse impacts, they are managed to prevent such impacts, or not authorized to proceed.

B. To identify vulnerable marine ecosystems and determine whether bottom fishing activities would cause significant adverse impacts to such ecosystems and the long-term sustainability of deep sea fish stocks, inter alia by improving scientific research and data collection and sharing, and through new and exploratory fisheries;

C. In respect of areas where vulnerable marine ecosystems, including seamounts, hydrothermal vents and cold water corals, are known to occur or are likely to occur based on the best available scientific information, to close such areas to bottom fishing and ensure that such activities do not proceed unless it has established conservation and management measures to prevent significant adverse impacts on vulnerable marine ecosystems; and

D. To require members of the regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements to require vessels flying their flag to cease bottom fishing activities in areas where, in the course of fishing operations, vulnerable marine ecosystems are encountered, and to report the encounter so that appropriate measures can be adopted in respect of the relevant site;

OP84.  Calls upon regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements with the competence to regulate bottom fisheries to make the measures adopted pursuant to paragraph 83 publicly available;

OP85.  Calls upon those States participating in negotiations to establish a regional fisheries management organization or arrangement competent to regulate bottom fisheries to expedite such negotiations and, by no later than December 31, 2007, to adopt and implement interim measures consistent with paragraph 83 and make these measures publicly available;

OP86.  Calls upon flag States to either adopt and implement measures in accordance with paragraph 83, mutatis mutandis, or cease to authorize fishing vessels flying their flag to conduct bottom fisheries in areas beyond national jurisdiction where there is no regional fisheries management organization or arrangement with the competence to regulate such fisheries or interim measures in accordance with paragraph 85, until measures are taken in accordance with paragraph 83 or 85;

OP87.  Further calls upon States to make publicly available through the FAO a list of those vessels flying their flag authorized to conduct bottom fisheries in areas beyond national jurisdiction, and the measures they have adopted pursuant to paragraph 86;

OP88.  Emphasizes the critical role played by the FAO in providing expert technical advice, in assisting with international fisheries policy development and management standards, and in collection and dissemination of information on fisheries-related issues, including the protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems from the impacts of fishing;

OP89.  Commends the FAO for its work on the management of deep sea fisheries in the high seas, including the expert consultation held on 21 to 23 November 2006 in Bangkok, Thailand, and further invites the FAO to establish at its next Committee on Fisheries meeting a timeframe of relevant work with respect to the management of the deep sea fisheries in the high seas, including enhancing data collection and dissemination, promoting information exchange and increased knowledge on deep sea fishing activities, such as through convening a meeting of States engaged in such fisheries, developing standards and criteria for use by States and regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in identifying vulnerable marine ecosystems and the impacts of fishing on such ecosystems, and establishing standards for the management of deep sea fisheries, such as through the development of an international plan of action;

OP90.  Invites the FAO to consider creating a global database of information on vulnerable marine ecosystems in areas beyond national jurisdiction to assist States in assessing any impacts of bottom fisheries on vulnerable marine ecosystems and invites States and regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements to submit information to any such database on all vulnerable marine ecosystems identified in accordance with paragraph 83;

OP91.  Request the Secretary-General, in cooperation with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, to include in his report to the 64th session concerning fisheries a section on the actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in response to paragraphs 83 to 90, and decides to conduct a further review of such actions during the 64th session of the United Nations General Assembly in 2009, with a view to further recommendations, where necessary;

OP92.  Encourages accelerated progress to establish criteria on the objectives and management of marine protected areas for fisheries purposes and in this regard welcomes the proposed work of FAO to develop technical guidelines in accordance with the Convention on the design, implementation and testing of marine protected areas for such purposes, and urges coordination and cooperation among all relevant international organizations and bodies;

OP93.    Notes that theSecond Intergovernmental Review Meeting of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities (GPA) held 16 - 20 October 2006 in Beijing, and urges all States to implement the GPA and to accelerate activity to safeguard the marine ecosystem, including fish stocks, against pollution and physical degradation; 

OP94.  Reaffirms the importance it attaches to paragraphs 77 to 81 of its resolution 60/31 concerning the issue of lost, abandoned, or discarded fishing gear and related marine debris and the adverse impacts such debris and derelict fishing gear has on, inter alia, fish stocks, habitats and other marine species, and urges accelerated progress by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in implementing these paragraphs of the resolution;

OP95.  Further encourages the FAO Committee on Fisheries to consider the issue of derelict fishing gear and related marine debris at its next meeting in 2007, and in particular the implementation of relevant provisions of the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries;

XI
Capacity-building

OP96.  Reiterates the crucial importance of cooperation by States directly or, as appropriate, through the relevant regional and subregional organizations, and by other international organizations, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations through its FishCODE programme, including through financial and/or technical assistance, in accordance with the Agreement, the Compliance Agreement, the Code, the International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing , the International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks, the International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity, the International Plan of Action for Reducing Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Longline Fisheries, and the FAO Guidelines to Reduce Sea Turtle Mortality in Fishing Operations, to increase the capacity of developing States to achieve the goals and implement the actions called for in the present resolution;

OP97. Welcomes the work of FAO in developing guidance on the strategies and measures required for the creation of an enabling environment for small-scale fisheries, including the development of a code of conduct and guidelines for enhancing the contribution of small-scale fisheries to poverty alleviation and food security that include adequate provisions with regard to financial measures and capacity-building, including transfer of technology; and encourages studies for creating possible alternative livelihoods for coastal communities;

OP98.  Encourages increased capacity-building and technical assistance by States, international financial institutions and relevant intergovernmental organizations and bodies for fishers, in particular small-scale fishers, in developing countries, and in particular small island developing States, consistent with environmental sustainability;

OP99. Encourages also the international community to enhance the opportunities for sustainable development in developing countries, in particular the least developed countries, small island developing States and coastal African States, by encouraging greater participation of those States in authorized fisheries activities being undertaken within areas under their national jurisdiction, in accordance with the Convention, by distant-water fishing nations in order to achieve better economic returns for developing countries from their fisheries resources within areas under their national jurisdiction and an enhanced role in regional fisheries management, as well as by enhancing the ability of developing countries to develop their own fisheries, as well as to participate in high seas fisheries, including access to such fisheries, in conformity with international law, in particular the Convention and the Agreement;

OP100. Requests distant-water fishing nations, when negotiating access agreements and arrangements with developing coastal States, to do so on an equitable and sustainable basis, including by giving greater attention to fish processing, including fish processing facilities, within the national jurisdiction of the developing coastal State to assist the realization of the benefits from the development of fisheries resources, and also including, inter alia, the transfer of technology and assistance for monitoring, control and surveillance and compliance and enforcement within areas under the national jurisdiction of the developing coastal State providing fisheries access, taking into account the forms of cooperation set out in article 25 of the Agreement;

OP101.  Encourages States individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to provide greater assistance and to promote coherence in such assistance for developing States in designing, establishing and implementing relevant agreements, instruments and tools for the conservation and sustainable management of fish stocks, including in designing and strengthening their domestic regulatory fisheries policies and those of regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in their regions, and the enhancement of research and scientific capabilities through existing funds, such as the Assistance Fund under Part VII of the Agreement, bilateral assistance, regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements assistance funds, the FAO FishCODE Programme, the World Bank’s global programme on fisheries and the Global Environment Facility;

OP102.            Calls upon States to promote, through continuing dialogue and the assistance and cooperation provided in accordance with articles 24 to 26 of the Agreement, further ratification or accession to the Agreement by seeking to address inter alia the issue of lack of capacity and resources that might stand in the way of developing States becoming parties;

XII
Cooperation within the United Nations system

OP103.  Requests the relevant parts of the United Nations system, international financial institutions and donor agencies to support increased enforcement and compliance capabilities for regional fisheries management organizations and their member States;

OP104.  Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to continue its cooperative arrangements with United Nations agencies on the implementation of the international plans of action and to report to the Secretary-General, for inclusion in his annual report on sustainable fisheries, on priorities for cooperation and coordination in this work;

OP105.  Invites the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea of the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and other relevant bodies of the United Nations system to consult and cooperate in the preparation of questionnaires designed to collect information on sustainable fisheries, in order to avoid duplication;

XIII

Sixty-second session of the General Assembly

OP106.            Requests the Secretary-General to bring the present resolution to the attention of all members of the international community, relevant intergovernmental organizations, the organizations and bodies of the United Nations system, regional and subregional fisheries management organizations and relevant non-governmental organizations, and to invite them to provide the Secretary-General with information relevant to the implementation of the present resolution;

OP107.            Also requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its sixty-second session a report on “Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments”, taking into account information provided by States, relevant specialized agencies, in particular the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and other appropriate organs, organizations and programmes of the United Nations system, regional and subregional organizations and arrangements for the conservation and management of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, as well as other relevant intergovernmental bodies and non-governmental organizations, and consisting, inter alia, of elements provided in relevant paragraphs in the present resolution; 

OP108.            Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its sixty-second session, under the item entitled “Oceans and the law of the sea”, the sub-item entitled “Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments”.