International Day for the Fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing is observed on June 5. The day is observed to draw attention towards the issue of illegal fishing. Due to the illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing activities, every year a loss of 11-26 million tonnes of fish is reported, UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) stated.
The 1995 FAO Conference also adopted the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries in order “to promote long-term conservation and sustainable use of fisheries resources.”
“The Code is voluntary and sets out principles and international standards of behaviour for responsible practices with a view to ensuring the effective conservation, management and development of living aquatic resources, with due respect for the ecosystem and biodiversity,” the UN website stated
In order to counter this, the UN General Assembly in 2015 adopted the Sustainable Development Agenda. Through this, the body urges the international community to “effectively regulate harvesting and end overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and destructive fishing practices”.
History
The General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean of the FAO presented a proposal in 2015 that there should be a dedicated day for fighting against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Then, in July 2017, at the 40th session of the FAO Conference, the resolution was submitted for approval. Later, in December, the UN General Assembly declared June 5 as the International Day for the Fight Against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing.
Apart from this, the UN also announced the year 2022 as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture. It will put spotlight on the small-scale fisheries who comprise 90 percent of the world’s fisheries workforce.
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