High-level delegations of fisheries ministries from 50 countries are meeting in Agadir, Morocco to discuss opportunities and challenges in the fishing sector.
A statement, issued by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), noted that the meeting, which begun on Monday, would end on Friday.
It stated that the biennial meeting was being held in Africa for the first time.
It noted that the delegates were discussing emerging governance needs in a sector that provided the world with 17 per cent of its animal protein and developing countries with more export revenue than meat, tobacco, rice and sugar combined.
The FAO statement added that the globalisation of fish trade, driven in large part by fast growth in aquaculture, raised challenging needs for better rules and practices regarding traceability, commercial preparations for shifts in demand, consumption habits and climate change impacts.
It said that work should also focus on harmonising certification requirements for fish exports to major international markets where consumers and retailers were becoming more alert to quality, safety and legality concerns.
It revealed that international fish trade and fishery products had doubled in a decade to $144 billion in 2014 and that
out of that, lower-income nations together exported $78 billion in 2014, more than three times the value of global rice export.
The Organisation quoted Mr Audun Lem, the Deputy-Director, FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy Department, as saying that “trade in fish is much more important than people think, both in absolute and relative terms.”
It said dialogues over the week-long meeting in Morocco would help member countries and industry representatives understand new trends, and foster the development of strategies that could “best position developing countries to develop their fisheries sectors in a sustainable manner.
