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Governance and sustainable global fisheries in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic

GEF-UNDP/SFP Global Marine Commodities Project

By IW:LEARN

October 20^th, 2020

“BUSINESS AS USUAL”

It was not long ago that we used this expression. However, the COVID-19 global pandemic has required us to rethink its meaning. The crisis has had profound impacts on the seafood sector, and on the livelihoods of industrial and small-scale fishers as a result. The food system has been disrupted all along the supply chain, from demand and supply to production. The pandemic has exposed the vulnerability of communities dependent on fisheries as a result of the informal status of the fishing activity. Women and men who work in unmanaged fisheries often lack access to basic rights and fishing communities that operate in the informal economy risk being left out of relief aid.

The current situation offers an opportunity to reflect on the state of fisheries prior to the COVID-19 crisis and highlights the need for a paradigm shift in the fisheries sector. On the demand side, there are still markets that do not distinguish where their fish come from and buy them without any sustainability requirements. On the supply side, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing continues to raise global challenges, and many fishers are left vulnerable as they operate under informal regimes.

The crisis is shedding light on the urgent need to strengthen management and enforcement as well as formality in the fishing sector. Economic reactivation measures post-COVID-19 should go hand in hand with improved fisheries governance. The GEF-funded UNDP/Global Marine Commodities (GMC) project and its partner Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP), promote a multi-actor approach that can help prevent fisheries from slipping back into the pre-COVID-19 scenario, by avoiding destructive practices and achieving sustainable marine commodities.