62. The Workshop Representative posed the question: “What has happened to the fish stocks of the world?”. He responded that resources have continued to decline at an alarming rate and that something must be done to stop this decline. He added that all countries were trying to ensure that their resources were exploited in a sustainable manner but the presence of IUU fishing made this task even harder. The Representative stated that it was timely to develop NPOAs-IUU. He noted that the Workshop that was organized by FAO and hosted by the Fisheries Department of Malaysia was appropriate for all ASEAN members including our bigger brothers like China and Korea, DPR. The Representative stated that he strongly believed that all participants and observers were now capable of producing NPOAs-IUU, reminding the Workshop that high seas aspects should be addressed. He pointed out that in the event that countries encountered difficulties, FAO could be called upon to assist in the development of the NPOAs-IUU. On behalf of the participants and observers, the Representative thanked FAO staff for their contribution to the Workshop. He also thanked the Fisheries Department of Malaysia for hosting the workshop. Finally, the Representative wished all the participants a happy and safe journey home requesting that they stay in contact by email or another means of communication.
