In News:

The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) 2025 Report on the State of World Marine Fishery Resources, released during the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice, France, offers a comprehensive assessment of global fish stock sustainability, regional disparities, and governance challenges.

Key Findings:

• Global Sustainability: 64.5% of marine fishery stocks are fished within biologically sustainable levels, indicating modest improvement. However, 35.5% remain overexploited.
• Deep-Sea Species Vulnerability: Only 29% of deep-sea species are sustainably harvested, largely due to biological traits like slow growth, delayed maturity, and low reproductive rates. These characteristics impair recovery from overfishing.
• Migratory Shark Concerns: Of the 23 shark stocks assessed, 43.5% are overfished, especially in the tropical Indo-Pacific where they frequently become bycatch in tuna fisheries.
• Tuna Success Story: 87% of evaluated tuna and tuna-like species are sustainably fished, a result of effective regulation by Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs).
• Regional Disparities: The northeast and southwest Pacific show high sustainability levels, while areas such as the Mediterranean and Black Sea lag, with only 35.1% of stocks sustainably managed.
• Data Gaps: Despite high reported sustainability (72.7%) in the eastern Indian Ocean, concerns remain due to insufficient species-specific stock assessments.

Governance and Policy Challenges:

• Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing: Continues to threaten stock sustainability. IUU encompasses:
  • Illegal: Breaches of domestic or international laws.
  • Unreported: Failure to report or misreport catches.
  • Unregulated: Conducted by vessels operating beyond jurisdictional authority, undermining conservation efforts.
• Subsidy Prohibitions (WTO Agreement):

• Bans financial support to vessels engaging in IUU fishing.
• Restricts subsidies for overfished stocks unless recovery measures are implemented.
• Prohibits aid for fishing in unregulated high seas zones.

Critical Analysis:

Positives:

• The rise in sustainable stocks signifies improved management awareness, particularly in regulated regions like the Pacific.
• Tuna fisheries demonstrate successful use of scientific tools—catch reporting and onboard observers—under RFMOs.
• The global survey included over 600 experts across 90 nations, lending credibility and robustness.

Negatives:

• Deep-sea stocks remain acutely overfished and biologically vulnerable.
• Shark species, integral to marine food webs, continue to suffer from bycatch and poor regulatory coverage.
• Monitoring shortfalls in Southeast Asia and African coasts prevent precise biomass estimation and conservation action.
• Weaker implementation and unregulated artisanal practices challenge sustainability in Mediterranean and Black Sea regions.

Recommendations for Sustainable Fisheries Governance:

• Empower RFMOs with real-time monitoring systems, electronic catch reporting, and observer programs.
• Adopt Ecosystem-Based Approaches that integrate climate resilience and biodiversity objectives.
• Strengthen Data Infrastructure in data-deficient regions with support from international bodies like the FAO and World Bank.
• Curtail Harmful Subsidies as per WTO protocols to reduce economic incentives driving overfishing.
• Promote Community Participation through co-management strategies and the development of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).