During its twenty-third session held in Rome, Italy, from 7-10 July 1998, the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) discussed options for the work of its new Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC). Among the items given prominence were:
Para 35: "Some delegates emphasized that a critical issue would be to define adequate management units, taking into consideration the best available information on marine resources and sub-regional specificity".
This led to a definition of the work of the first session of the SAC, in which it was asked to provide concrete advice to the Commission on the following issues:
Para 43: (extract) ....It was decided that the SAC should first review the current situation and future directions of its work with respect to the availability of data and methodologies, and that it should provide concrete advice to the Commission on the following questions:
a) definition of appropriate management units for Mediterranean fisheries.
b) definition of the appropriate parameters to use when measuring fishing effort.
c) identification of the current situation and available information on stock assessment for Mediterranean resources.
The first of the two studies herein addresses item a) above, and the second, item b) while also touching on item c). These studies are intended to provide some background to the discussions of the first session of the SAC.
