A Technical Consultation on Sea Turtles Conservation and Fisheries was convened by FAO and held in Bangkok, Thailand, from 29 November to 2 December 2004. The Consultation was attended by 28 Members of FAO and by observers from three intergovernmental and four international non-governmental organizations, as agreed at the twenty-fifth session of the Committee on Fisheries held in Rome, Italy, from 24 to 28 February 2003.
The Technical Consultation addressed the major issues with regards to sea turtles conservation and fisheries with special emphasis on: (i) current status of sea turtles conservation and factors affecting the mortality of sea turtles; (ii) fishing gears and techniques to reduce sea turtle mortality; (iii) development of guidelines to reduce sea turtle mortality; (iv) assistance to members from developing countries for the conservation of sea turtles, and (v) future directions for global work on sea turtles conservation and fisheries.
The Technical Consultation agreed on recommendations for FAO, for Regional Fishery Bodies and for Member States related to future work on sea turtle conservation and reduction of sea turtle mortality in fishing operations, to be submitted to the twenty-sixth session of the Committee on Fisheries.
