FAO Brussels Director briefs Council of the EU on FISH4ACP project

FAO Brussels Director Raschad Al-Khafaji presented the FISH4ACP project to the ACP Working Party of the Council of the European Union. The Council Working Party was convened under the Presidency of the Government of France.

The FISH4ACP project - coordinated by FAO with support from the European Union (EU) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development - addresses key challenges to sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in 12 African, Caribbean and Pacific countries and works to maximize economic returns and social benefits, while minimizing the detrimental effects on natural habitats and marine wildlife.

During his presentation, Al-Khafaji highlighted sustainable trade and value chains as one of the three pillars of FAO’s Roadmap to Blue Transformation. He stressed that a ‘blue transformation’, which seeks to make aquatic foods systems more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable, will be essential to face the sector’s challenges and achieve the Four Betters – better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life for all.

The project was praised by country delegates as an important area of cooperation, central to many economies of Member States of the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).

A DG INTPA representative took stock of the EU’s cooperation with OACPS on the blue economy through regional and bilateral programmes, providing an overview of the main areas of intervention.