APS : Saturday, 05 June 2021
ROME-Algeria is stepping up the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing by working to ensure inspections at sea throughout the Mediterranean region in partnership with
the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), said the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on its website.
As part of the activities of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), Algeria is working in partnership with EFCA and inspectors from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Libya, Montenegro, Tunisia and Ukraine to ensure consistent inspections at sea throughout the region, the same source said.
“The role of inspections in the Mediterranean is essential to ensure compliance with fisheries rules. The GFCM is developing a joint international monitoring and inspection programme in the Mediterranean and Black Seas to train national inspectors and improve access and exchange of information and data throughout the region,” FAO said.
According to the same source, there are hidden costs associated with IUU fishing. It is a theft of resources and adds billions of dollars to the costs borne by consumers and the global community.
An estimated 20 percent of the world’s total catch comes from IUU fishing and, in some regions such as the coastal waters of some developing countries; it can be up to 40 percent.
