APPENDIX E

Implementation of the 1995 FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries in the Pacific Islands: An Analysis of 2002 Responses

David J. Doulman^[1]

ABSTRACT

This paper summarizes the responses to the 2000 Code of Conduct questionnaire that was submitted on a self-assessment basis by FAO Members from the Southwest Pacific Region. The purpose of this and previous questionnaires was to gauge the extent to which Members are taking steps to implement the Code, and as a consequence, put in place measures that promote sustainable and responsible practices in the fisheries sector. Based on an analysis of the information provided by Members is assessed that sound progress is being achieved in the Southwest Pacific Region to implement the Code of Conduct.

INTRODUCTION

Article 4 of the 1995 FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries states, inter alia, that FAO will report to the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) concerning the implementation of the Code. The biennial report provided to COFI is based on a self-assessment questionnaire^[2] that is completed on a voluntary basis by FAO Members. In addition to reporting to Members, questionnaires are also provided to non-governmental organizations and regional fishery bodies. Since the adoption of the Code of Conduct, three reports have been made to COFI, the most recent report being to the 25^th Session of COFI which met in Rome in February 2003.

This paper draws on information compiled for the most recent COFI Session. The paper summarizes the responses from FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific area. Not only is the information from Members important to gauge the extent and rate at which the Code of Conduct is being implemented, the regional collation of information relating to the Code is also useful a means for indicating regional priorities and development assistance needs for the international donor community. A clear specification of these priorities and needs can assist donors better channel assistance to the fisheries sector.^[3]

Responses to the Code of Conduct questionnaire

Table 1 summarizes the total level of response to the FAO questionnaire in 2000 and 2003 as well as the response rates for the Members from the Southwest Pacific. In 2000, five Members (38 percent) responded to the questionnaire out of a regional total of 13 Members. In 2002, there was a major improvement in the response rate when it increased to 79 percent, or 11 Members out of a total of 14 Members. Between 2000 and 2002, the change in the response rate was 120 percent.

TABLE 1:
Comparison of the regional and total response rate to the questionnaire on the Code of Conduct for 2000 and 2002

Total responses to the questionnaire by FAO Members in 2000 and 2002 were 102 and 105 Members, respectively. Total responses increased by three percent over these two periods. When compared to the total number of FAO Members that were invited to respond to the questionnaire, the response rate was 56 percent in 2000 and slightly higher at 57 percent in 2002.

Table 2 shows the Southwest Pacific Members that responded, or did not respond, to the questionnaire in 2000 and 2002. All Members that responded in 2000 also responded in 2002. Significantly, Table 2 shows clearly that there was a marked increase in reporting by Members in the region. This is a most encouraging development and indicates the importance attached to the Code of Conduct in the Southwest Pacific region.

TABLE 2:
Southwest Pacific Region FAO Members responding to the questionnaire on the Code of Conduct in 2000 and 2002

PRIORITY RANKING OF THE CODE OF CONDUCT OBJECTIVES AND THEMES

Objectives

The Code of Conduct has a total of ten Objectives. They address each of the thematic areas of the Code. In their responses Southwest Pacific Members, as shown in Table 3, gave a high ranking to the majority of the Code's Objectives, with a concentration of responses in the extremely relevant for all Objectives. Such ranking indicated that the Code is highly relevant to the fisheries section in the region.

TABLE 3:
Priority rating by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region
of the Objectives of the Code of Conduct
(Ranking: 1 = not very relevant, 3 = relevant, 5 = extremely relevant)

Themes

There are eight thematic areas in the Code of Conduct, as indicated in Table 4. Southwest Pacific Members generally gave a high priority or priority rankings to most of the themes. Reflecting the small-island status of most Members in the region, inland fisheries development was given a lower priority ranking overall than the other thematic areas.

TABLE 4:
Prioritization of themes in the Code of Conduct by FAO Members
in the Southwest Pacific Region

CONFORMITY OF FISHERIES POLICIES AND NATIONAL LEGISLATION AND POLICIES WITH THE CODE OF CONDUCT

Southwest Pacific Members reported that most had fisheries policies and legislation that fully or partially conform to the thrusts of the Code of Conduct, as shown in Table 5. Most Members did not report on their efforts to make the Code more widely known among fishers and their communities. Nonetheless, some Members noted that they had taken steps to implement community-based fisheries management, distributed copies of the Code to stakeholders and consulted with stakeholders to publicize the Code.

TABLE 5:
FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region with fisheries policies and national legislation conform to the Code of Conduct

FISHERIES MANAGEMENT

Southwest Pacific Members reported that they had developed a total of 64 management plans for marine fisheries of which nearly 100 per cent had been fully implemented (Table 6). Only one inland fishery management plan had been elaborated and that plan was about 90 percent implemented.

TABLE 6:
Number of fishery management plans reported to have been developed and implemented by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region for marine and inland capture fisheries in accordance with the Code of Conduct

Four Members reported that their fishery management plans cover all marine catches landed and some 90 percent of landings in the inland fisheries. Most marine management plans contain measures designed to promote responsible resource use in accordance with the Code of Conduct. Responses to the measures taken for marine capture fisheries are shown in Table 7.

TABLE 7:
Measures in marine fishery management plans designed to promote responsible resource use in accordance with the Code of Conduct in the Southwest Pacific Region

Similarly, of the Members reporting on inland fisheries, most indicated that their management plans contained measures to promote sustainable resource use. Responses to the measures being taken are shown in Table 8.

TABLE 8:
Measures in inland fishery management plans designed to promote responsible resource use in accordance with the Code of Conduct among FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region

To enhance fisheries management, Members have been engaged in a range of activities including the revision of fisheries legislation, identifying important fish habitats and consulting with stakeholders about management plans. Target reference points have been developed by one Member for all marine fisheries while other Members have developed such reference points for some inshore (beche-de-mer, prawns, lobster and barramundi) as well as offshore (tuna) resources.

Three Members reported that stock specific reference points are being approached or exceeded. To address this problem, these Members have taken steps to reduce fishing effort and have introduced community-based fisheries management.

Two Members indicated that reference points had not been exceeded. Most Members reported that the precautionary approach had been applied. The application of precautionary measures has included area and seasonal closures and setting total allowable catches (TACs) at lower levels that a stock should be able to support.

FISHING OPERATIONS

Southwest Pacific Members indicated that in most cases fishing is properly authorized, as indicated in Table 9. The steps that Members have taken to ensure that fishing is carried out in a responsible manner include the use of comprehensive licensing arrangements and the issuance of quota, on board observers, surface and aerial surveillance and the collection and sharing of information on a regional basis.

TABLE 9:
Fishing operations in the Southwest Pacific Region marine capture fisheries that conform to the Code of Conduct

However, few Members have taken steps to limit bycatch and discards. One Member does not permit the discarding of fish taken under individual transferable quota (ITQ) allocations. Another member has implemented devices designed to reduce captures of bycatch (e.g. turtle excluder devices (TEDs) and bycatch excluder devices (BEDs) devices in trawl fisheries).

Two Members have reported that they have implemented fully vessel monitoring systems (VMS) while two others have partially implemented VMS. Other Members plan to implement VMS in the future.

AQUACULTURE DEVELOPMENT

Southwest Pacific Members reported that aquaculture development is managed under fisheries and environmental legislation. Three Members have comprehensive legislation in place while two other have legislation progressing through domestic processes for acceptance. Two Members reported no legislative framework at all for aquaculture.

Three Members^[4] have codes of best practice but the remainder have not developed and adopted such a code (Table 10). In one case, government has issued guidelines for aquaculture development and industry has issued its own environmental code.

TABLE 10:
Number of FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region that have developed and adopted of a code or instrument of best practices for aquaculture in accordance with the Code of Conduct

Most Members indicated that they undertake environmental assessments of aquaculture operations, monitor aquaculture operations and seek to minimize harmful effects on the introduction of non-native species or genetically altered stocks used in aquaculture but that there is a degree of variation in the level of rigour among Members (Table 11). It was reported that measures being developed to promote responsible aquaculture include policy and legislation reviews, water filtration, awareness building about the need for responsible aquaculture and the fostering of industry groupings.

TABLE 11:
Number of FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific region with procedures to assess, monitor and minimize harmful effects on species introductions or genetically altered stocks in aquaculture in accordance with the Code of Conduct

INTEGRATION OF FISHERIES INTO COASTAL AREA MANAGEMENT

Southwest Pacific Members reported that most of them have legislation in place to address the integration of fisheries into coastal management. The level of conflict between fisheries and other activities in the coastal zones varies significantly among Members and activities as shown in Table 12.

TABLE 12:
Conflict levels within the fisheries sector and between the fisheries sector and activities of other sectors reported by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region to the implementation of the Code of Conduct

Table 13 indicates that about half of the Members reported that they did not have mechanisms in place to resolve conflicts that might arise in the coastal zone.

TABLE 13:
Number of FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region with mechanisms to resolve conflicts over the use of coastal resources in accordance with the Code of Conduct

POST-HARVEST PRACTICES AND TRADE

Five Southwest Pacific Members reported that they have effective food safety and quality assurance systems for fish and fishery products (Table 14). Members indicated that activities such as training in HACCP requirement and fish handling, minimization of wastage in processing and auditing of export facilities were being pursued as a means of improving post-harvest practices.

TABLE 14:
Numbers of FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region with or without an effective food safety and quality assurance system for fish and fisheries products

Members advised that in most cases it was possible for producers to determine the origin of fish and fisheries products while this was possible for consumers in about 50 percent of cases (Table 15). Most Members reported that they have not taken steps to ensure that processors, brokers etc do not deal in illegally landed product. However, three Members have measures in place to address this problem including requirements that licensed fishers can only land fish and that landings must be documented and subject to other inspections.

TABLE 15:
Number of FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region that can or cannot identify the origin of fish and fisheries products

FISHERIES RESEARCH

Four Southwest Pacific Members indicated that there are reliable stock status estimates for 112 stocks or 67 per cent of the total stocks in these countries. Many Members reported that they collect reliable data on catch and fishing effort while only three Members of those reporting indicated that they have adequate personnel to generate data to sustainably manage fisheries. Generally, Members indicated a lack of staff to undertake stock assessment, database development and statistics.

TABLE 16:
Summary information relating to responses by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region concerning the status of fisheries research in accordance with the Code of Conduct

Most Members reported the availability of catch and effort data from both commercial and artisanal fisheries, research vessels data, on-board sampling data and in-port sample data to support the development of fishery management plans (Table 17). Some Members reported that sanctions are applied to fishers who fail to meet data requirements. Four Members reported that they monitor the state of the environment and bycatch and discards.

TABLE 17:
Availability of data for input to fishery management plans by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region

INTERNATIONAL PLANS OF ACTION

Southwest Pacific Members have generally reported, with some exceptions, that they have not taken action to implement the four international plans of action (IPOAs), as indicated in Table 18. However, some Members have commenced initial assessments.

TABLE 18:
Summary information relating to responses by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region concerning the implementation of the International Plans of Action

Three Members noted that they do not have plans to meet the deadlines for the implementation of the IPOAs through the elaboration of national plans of action (NPAs).

Three Members will have their NPA-sharks finalized by early 2003.

Longline fisheries are reported in most Members but only in one case are birds considered to be problematic. This means that the IPOA-seabirds is of little relevance to these Members even though three Members have advised that they will develop NPAs-seabirds. Tori lines are required to minimize seabird catches in the longline fishery of one Member.

IUU fishing by foreign vessels was reported by two Members to impact efforts to achieve sustainable fisheries and two Members indicated that they would have NPAs-IUU in place in 2003. Other Members indicated their intentions to develop such NPAs.

INTERNATIONAL FISHERY INSTRUMENTS

International fora and resolutions have called upon States to ratify, accede to, or accept, as appropriate, and implement international fishery instruments as a means of strengthening fisheries conservation and management. Instruments referred to, in particular, are the 1993 FAO Compliance Agreement and the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement.

Table 19 shows Members that have ratified, acceded to, or accepted the 1993 FAO Compliance Agreement and the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement. It also indicates the number of Members that have the intention to take such action. In summary:

TABLE 19:
Ratification, accession or acceptance of the 1993 FAO Compliance Agreement and the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement by FAO Members in the Southwest Pacific Region

No Southwest Pacific Member has accepted (as at 1 June 2003) the 1993 Compliance Agreement although six Members have the intention to do so. No Member is providing data to FAO concerning vessels registered on the high seas. Eight Members have ratified the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement and two Members have the intention of doing so.

National constraints to the implementation of the Code of Conduct and proposed solutions

Responses from Southwest Pacific Members concerning constraints to the implementation of the Code of Conduct had a high degree of commonality. Members identified the following constraints:

• a lack of technical and financial resources to support implementation of the Code;
• inappropriate government policies to foster and support implementation;
• insufficient training and awareness about the Code among stakeholders;
• a lack of fishery management plans, and
• a lack of incorporation of the Code objectives and principles in national fisheries legislation.

Members proposed the following solutions to promote the more effective implementation of the Code:

• media campaigns to increase awareness about the Code;

• the revision of national policies and legislation;

• the development of additional fishery management plans using the Code as framework, and

• the wider distribution of additional copies of the Code, technical guidelines and simple language version of these documents.

CONCLUSION

The implementation of the Code of Conduct requires strong political commitment on the part of Members to achieve responsible fisheries. In many cases, these commitments will entail fundamental changes to fisheries policies and legislation and in the way that fisheries administrations operate on a day-to-day basis. International and regional organizations can play an important role in supporting national action to implement the Code but only governments are in a position to introduce the changes required to secure sustainable outcomes in the fisheries sector. Non-governmental organizations also have a valuable role to play, especially in fostering awareness about the Code in fishing communities.

A review and analysis of the information provided by Members in the Southwest Pacific Region indicates that steps are being taken to implement the Code, albeit on a variable basis. It is highly commendable that the response rate to the 2002 questionnaire showed a marked increase over the response rate in 2000. From an analysis of the information presented in the questionnaires and summarized in this paper, it is concluded that good progress is being made in the Southwest Pacific Region to implement the Code but that concerted and sustained action is still needed by Members if the Code is to achieve its objectives fully. In this connection, Members should address the constraints that have been identified in implementing the Code and focus attention on the solutions that have been proposed.