Sustainable Fisheries, Including Through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 Relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and Related Instruments

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 74b Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments, published in 2011.

What other versions does this mandate have?

23 versions · 2004–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/109

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2025	A/RES/80/109	Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments	25,857	92%Compare
2024	A/RES/79/145	Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments	24,873	87%Compare
2023	A/RES/78/68	Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments	23,917	87%Compare
2022	A/RES/77/118	Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments	23,308	85%Compare
2021	A/RES/76/71	Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments	22,019	92%Compare

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

11 reports · 2004–2026

Year	Symbol	Title	Mandate resolution
2026	A/81/88	Actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to relevant paragraphs of General Assembly resolutions 64/72, 66/68 and 77/118, on sustainable fisheries, addressing the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems and the long-term sustainability of deep-sea fish stocks report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/79/145
2022	A/77/155	Actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to paragraphs 113, 117 and 119 to 124 of General Assembly resolution 64/72, paragraphs 121, 126, 129, 130 and 132 to 134 of General Assembly resolution 66/68 and paragraphs 156, 171, 175, 177 to 188 and 219 of General Assembly resolution 71/123 on sustainable fisheries, addressing the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems and the long-term sustainability of deep-sea fish stocks report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/75/89
2020	A/75/157	Actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to paragraphs 113, 117 and 119 to 124 of General Assembly resolution 64/72, paragraphs 121, 126, 129, 130 and 132 to 134 of General Assembly resolution 66/68 and paragraphs 156, 171, 175, 177 to 188 and 219 of General Assembly resolution 71/123 on sustainable fisheries, addressing the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems and the long-term sustainability of deep-sea fish stocks report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/73/125
2016	A/71/351	Actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to paragraphs 113, 117 and 119 to 124 of General Assembly resolution 64/72 and paragraphs 121, 126, 129, 130 and 132 to 134 of General Assembly resolution 66/68 on sustainable fisheries, addressing the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems and the long-term sustainability of deep-sea fish stocks report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/69/109
2012	A/67/315	Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments report of the Secretary-General

What subjects does this mandate have?

16 subjects

Capacity Building Coordination Within UN System Drift-Net Fishing Fisheries Fisheries Bycatch Fishery Conservation Fishery Management Fishing Fishing Vessels Law Enforcement Law of the Sea Marine Ecosystems Regional Cooperation Sustainable Consumption Sustainable Development Treaty Compliance

What’s in this document?

146 operative paragraphs

I.Achieving sustainable fisheries

Reaffirms the importance it attaches to the long-term conservation, management and sustainable use of the marine living resources of the world’s oceans and seas and the obligations of States to cooperate to this end, in accordance with international law, as reflected in the relevant provisions of the Convention,Error: Reference source not found in particular the provisions on cooperation set out in Part V and Part VII, section 2, of the Convention, and where applicable, the Agreement;Error: Reference source not found

Encourages States to give due priority to the implementation of the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”)¹⁴ in relation to achieving sustainable fisheries, especially restoring depleted stocks to levels that can produce maximum sustainable yield on an urgent basis and, where possible, not later than 2015;

¹⁴Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa, 26 August–4 September 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.03.II.A.1 and corrigendum), chap. I, resolution 2, annex.

Urges States, either directly or through appropriate subregional, regional or global organizations or arrangements, to intensify efforts to assess and address, as appropriate, the impacts of global climate change on the sustainability of fish stocks and the habitats that support them, in particular the most affected ones;

Emphasizes the obligations of flag States to discharge their responsibilities, in accordance with the Convention and the Agreement, to ensure compliance by vessels flying their flag with the conservation and management measures adopted and in force with respect to fisheries resources on the high seas;

Calls upon all States that have not done so, in order to achieve the goal of universal participation, to become parties to the Convention, which sets out the legal framework within which all activities in the oceans and seas must be carried out, taking into account the relationship between the Convention and the Agreement;

Calls upon all States, directly or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to apply widely, in accordance with international law and the Code,Error: Reference source not found the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches to the conservation, management and exploitation of fish stocks, and also calls upon States parties to the Agreement to implement fully the provisions of article 6 of the Agreement as a matter of priority;

Encourages States to increase their reliance on scientific advice in developing, adopting and implementing conservation and management measures, and to increase their efforts to promote science for conservation and management measures, including through international cooperation, that apply, in accordance with international law, the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches to fisheries management, enhancing understanding of ecosystem approaches, in order to ensure the long-term conservation and sustainable use of marine living resources, and in this regard encourages the implementation of the Strategy for Improving Information on Status and Trends of Capture Fisheries of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations¹⁵ as a framework for the improvement and understanding of fishery status and trends;

¹⁵Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Report of the twenty-fifth session of the Committee on Fisheries, Rome, 24–28 February 2003, FAO Fisheries Report No. 702 (FIPL/R702 (En)), appendix H.

Calls upon all States, directly or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to apply stock-specific precautionary reference points, as described in Annex II to the Agreement and in the Code, to ensure that populations of harvested stocks, and, where necessary, associated or dependent species, are maintained at, or restored to, sustainable levels, and to use these reference points for triggering conservation and management action;

Encourages States to apply the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches in adopting and implementing conservation and management measures addressing, inter alia, by-catch, pollution and overfishing, and protecting habitats of specific concern, taking into account existing guidelines developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations;

Also encourages States to enhance or develop observer programmes individually or through regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in order to improve data collection on, inter alia, target and by-catch species, which could also assist monitoring, control and surveillance tools, and to take into account standards, forms of cooperation and other existing structures for such programmes as described in article 25 of the Agreement and article 5 of the Code;

Calls upon States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to collect and, where appropriate, report to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations required catch and effort data, and fishery-related information, in a complete, accurate and timely way, including for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks within and beyond areas under national jurisdiction, discrete high seas fish stocks, and by-catch and discards; and, where they do not exist, to establish processes to strengthen data collection and reporting by members of regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, including through regular reviews of member compliance with such obligations, and, when such obligations are not met, require the member concerned to rectify the problem, including through the preparation of plans of action with timelines;

Invites States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to cooperate with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in the implementation and further development of the Fisheries Resources Monitoring System initiative;

Reaffirms paragraph 10 of resolution 61/105 of 8 December 2006, and calls upon States, including through regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to urgently adopt measures to fully implement the International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of SharksError: Reference source not found for directed and non-directed shark fisheries, based on the best available scientific information, through, inter alia, limits on catch or fishing effort, by requiring that vessels flying their flag collect and regularly report data on shark catches, including species-specific data, discards and landings, undertaking, including through international cooperation, comprehensive stock assessments of sharks, reducing shark by-catch and by-catch mortality, and, where scientific information is uncertain or inadequate, not increasing fishing effort in directed shark fisheries until measures have been established to ensure the long-term conservation, management and sustainable use of shark stocks and to prevent further declines of vulnerable or threatened shark stocks;

Calls upon States to take immediate and concerted action to improve the implementation of and compliance with existing regional fisheries management organization or arrangement and national measures that regulate shark fisheries and incidental catch of sharks, in particular those measures which prohibit or restrict fisheries conducted solely for the purpose of harvesting shark fins, and, where necessary, to consider taking other measures, as appropriate, such as requiring that all sharks be landed with each fin naturally attached;

Calls upon regional fisheries management organizations with the competence to regulate highly migratory species to strengthen or establish precautionary, science-based conservation and management measures, as appropriate, for sharks taken in fisheries within their convention areas consistent with the International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks, taking into account the Course of Actions adopted at the second joint meeting of tuna regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, held in San Sebastian, Spain, from 29 June to 3 July 2009;

Reiterates its request to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to prepare a report containing a comprehensive analysis of the implementation of the International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks, as well as progress in implementing paragraph 11 of General Assembly resolution 62/177 of 18 December 2007;

Urges States to eliminate barriers to trade in fish and fisheries products which are not consistent with their rights and obligations under the World Trade Organization agreements, taking into account the importance of the trade in fish and fisheries products, particularly for developing countries;

Urges States and relevant international and national organizations to provide for the participation of small-scale fishery stakeholders in related policy development and fisheries management strategies in order to achieve long-term sustainability for such fisheries, consistent with the duty to ensure the proper conservation and management of fisheries resources;

Encourages States, either directly or through competent and appropriate subregional, regional or global organizations and arrangements, to analyse, as appropriate, the impact of fishing for marine species occupying low trophic levels;

II.Implementation of the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks

Calls upon all States, and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement, that have not done so to ratify or accede to the Agreement and in the interim to consider applying it provisionally;

Calls upon States parties to the Agreement to effectively implement, as a matter of priority, the provisions of the Agreement through their domestic legislation and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in which they participate;

Emphasizes the importance of those provisions of the Agreement relating to bilateral, subregional and regional cooperation in enforcement, and urges continued efforts in this regard;

Urges States parties to the Agreement, in accordance with article 21, paragraph 4, thereof to inform, either directly or through the relevant subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement, all States whose vessels fish on the high seas in the same subregion or region of the form of identification issued by those States parties to officials duly authorized to carry out boarding and inspection functions in accordance with articles 21 and 22 of the Agreement;

Also urges States parties to the Agreement, in accordance with article 21, paragraph 4, thereof, to designate an appropriate authority to receive notifications pursuant to article 21 and to give due publicity to such designation through the relevant subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement;

Invites regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements which have not yet done so to adopt procedures for high seas boarding and inspection that are consistent with articles 21 and 22 of the Agreement;

Calls upon States, individually and, as appropriate, through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements with competence over discrete high seas fish stocks, to adopt the necessary measures to ensure the long-term conservation, management and sustainable use of such stocks in accordance with the Convention and consistent with the Code and the general principles set forth in the Agreement;

Invites States to assist developing States in enhancing their participation in regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, including by facilitating access to fisheries for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, in accordance with article 25, paragraph 1 (b), of the Agreement, taking into account the need to ensure that such access benefits the developing States concerned and their nationals;

Invites States and international financial institutions and organizations of the United Nations system to provide assistance according to Part VII of the Agreement, including, if appropriate, the development of special financial mechanisms or instruments to assist developing States, in particular the least developed among them and small island developing States, to enable them to develop their national capacity to exploit fishery resources, including developing their domestically flagged fishing fleet, value-added processing and the expansion of their economic base in the fishing industry, consistent with the duty to ensure the proper conservation and management of fisheries resources;

Notes with appreciation the contributions made by States to the Assistance Fund established under Part VII of the Agreement, and encourages States, intergovernmental organizations, international financial institutions, national institutions and non-governmental organizations, as well as natural and juridical persons, to make further voluntary financial contributions to the Fund;

Notes with satisfaction that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea of the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat (“the Division”) have taken measures to publicize the availability of assistance through the Assistance Fund, and encourages the Organization and the Division to continue their efforts in this regard;

Encourages accelerated progress by States, individually and, as appropriate, through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, regarding the recommendations of the Review Conference on the Agreement, held in New York from 22 to 26 May 2006,¹⁶ and the identification of emerging priorities;

¹⁶See A/CONF.210/2006/15, annex.

Encourages States, individually and, as appropriate, through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to consider implementing, as appropriate, the recommendations of the resumed Review Conference;¹⁷

¹⁷See A/CONF.210/2010/7, annex.

Reaffirms its request that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations initiate arrangements with States for the collection and dissemination of data on fishing in the high seas by vessels flying their flag at the subregional and regional levels where no such arrangements exist;

Also reaffirms its request that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations revise its global fisheries statistics database to provide information on straddling fish stocks, highly migratory fish stocks and discrete high seas fish stocks on the basis of where the catch is taken;

III.Related fisheries instruments

Emphasizes the importance of the effective implementation of the provisions of the Compliance Agreement,Error: Reference source not found and urges continued efforts in this regard;

Calls upon all States and other entities referred to in article X, paragraph 1, of the Compliance Agreement that have not yet become parties to that Agreement to do so as a matter of priority and, in the interim, to consider applying it provisionally;

Urges States and subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to implement and promote the application of the Code within their areas of competence;

Urges States to develop and implement, as a matter of priority, national and, as appropriate, regional plans of action to put into effect the international plans of action of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations;

Encourages the development of best practice guidelines for safety at sea in connection with marine fisheries by the competent international organizations;

IV.Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing

Emphasizes once again its serious concern that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing remains one of the greatest threats to marine ecosystems and continues to have serious and major implications for the conservation and management of ocean resources, as well as the food security and the economies of many States, particularly developing States, and renews its call upon States to comply fully with all existing obligations and to combat such fishing and urgently to take all necessary steps to implement the International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations;Error: Reference source not found

Urges States to exercise effective control over their nationals, including beneficial owners, and vessels flying their flag, in order to prevent and deter them from engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities or supporting vessels engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities, including those vessels listed by regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements as engaged in those activities, and to facilitate mutual assistance to ensure that such actions can be investigated and proper sanctions imposed;

Also urges States to take effective measures, at the national, subregional, regional and global levels, to deter the activities, including illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, of any vessel which undermines conservation and management measures that have been adopted by subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in accordance with international law;

Calls upon States not to permit vessels flying their flag to engage in fishing on the high seas or in areas under the national jurisdiction of other States, unless duly authorized by the authorities of the States concerned and in accordance with the conditions set out in the authorization, and to take specific measures, including deterring the reflagging of vessels by their nationals, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention, the Agreement and the Compliance Agreement, to control fishing operations by vessels flying their flag;

Urges States, individually and collectively through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to develop appropriate processes to assess the performance of States with respect to implementing the obligations regarding fishing vessels flying their flag set out in relevant international instruments;

Reaffirms the need to strengthen, where necessary, the international legal framework for intergovernmental cooperation, in particular at the subregional and regional levels, in the management of fish stocks and in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, in a manner consistent with international law, and for States and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement to collaborate in efforts to address these types of fishing activities;

Urges regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to further coordinate measures for combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities, such as through the development of a common list of vessels identified as engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing or the mutual recognition of the illegal, unreported and unregulated vessel lists established by each organization or arrangement;

Reaffirms its call upon States to take all necessary measures consistent with international law, without prejudice to a State’s sovereignty over ports in its territory and to reasons of force majeure or distress, including the prohibition of vessels from accessing their ports followed by a report to the flag State concerned, when there is clear evidence that they are or have been engaged in or have supported illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, or when they refuse to give information either on the origin of the catch or on the authorization under which the catch has been made;

Reaffirms paragraph 53 of resolution 64/72 with regard to eliminating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing by vessels flying “flags of convenience” and requiring that a “genuine link” be established between States and fishing vessels flying their flags, and urges States operating open registry to effectively control all fishing vessels flying their flag, as required by international law, or otherwise stop open registry for fishing vessels;

Recognizes the need for enhanced port State measures to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and urges States to cooperate, in particular at the regional level and through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to adopt all necessary port measures, consistent with international law taking into account article 23 of the Agreement, and to further promote the development and application of standards at the regional level;

Encourages, in this regard, States and regional economic integration organizations to consider ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United NationsError: Reference source not found with a view to its early entry into force;

Encourages strengthened collaboration between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the International Maritime Organization, taking into account the respective competencies, mandates and experience of the two organizations, to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, particularly in improving the implementation of flag State responsibilities and port State measures;

Encourages States, with respect to vessels flying their flag, and port States, to make every effort to share data on landings and catch quotas, and in this regard encourages regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements to consider developing open databases containing such data for the purpose of enhancing the effectiveness of fisheries management;

Calls upon States to take all necessary measures to ensure that vessels flying their flag do not engage in trans-shipment of fish caught by fishing vessels engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing;

Urges States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to adopt and implement internationally agreed market-related measures in accordance with international law, including principles, rights and obligations established in World Trade Organization agreements, as called for in the International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing;

Encourages information-sharing regarding emerging market- and trade-related measures by States and other relevant actors with appropriate international forums, given the potential implications of these measures for all States, consistent with the established plan of work of the Committee on Fisheries of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and taking into account the Technical Guidelines for Responsible Fish Trade of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations;¹⁸

¹⁸Available from www.fao.org/fishery/publications/technical-guidelines/en.

Notes the concerns about possible connections between international organized crime and illegal fishing in certain regions of the world, and encourages States, including through the appropriate international forums and organizations, to study the causes and methods of and contributing factors to illegal fishing to increase knowledge and understanding of those possible connections, and to make the findings publicly available, bearing in mind the distinct legal regimes and remedies under international law applicable to illegal fishing and international organized crime;

V.Monitoring, control and surveillance and compliance and enforcement

Calls upon States, in accordance with international law, to strengthen implementation of or, where they do not exist, adopt comprehensive monitoring, control and surveillance measures and compliance and enforcement schemes individually and within those regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in which they participate, in order to provide an appropriate framework for promoting compliance with agreed conservation and management measures, and further urges enhanced coordination among all relevant States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in these efforts;

Encourages further work by competent international organizations, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to develop guidelines on flag State control of fishing vessels;

Urges States, individually and through relevant regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to establish mandatory vessel monitoring, control and surveillance systems, in particular to require that vessel monitoring systems be carried by all vessels fishing on the high seas as soon as practicable, recalling that paragraph 62 of resolution 63/112 of 5 December 2008 urged that large-scale fishing vessels be required to carry vessel monitoring systems no later than December 2008, and to share information on fisheries enforcement matters;

Calls upon States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to strengthen or establish, consistent with national and international law, positive or negative lists of vessels fishing within the areas covered by relevant regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in order to promote compliance with conservation and management measures and to identify products from illegal, unreported and unregulated catches, and encourages improved coordination among all States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in sharing and using this information, taking into account the forms of cooperation with developing States as set out in article 25 of the Agreement;

Encourages the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in cooperation with States, regional economic integration organizations, the International Maritime Organization and, as appropriate, regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to expedite efforts to develop and manage a comprehensive global record, including with a unique vessel identifier system, and in this regard encourages the Committee on Fisheries at its twenty-ninth session, from 31 January to 4 February 2011, to consider the recommendations of the Technical Consultation to Identify a Structure and Strategy for the Development and Implementation of the Global Record of Fishing Vessels, Refrigerated Transport Vessels and Supply Vessels;¹⁹

¹⁹See Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Report of the FAO Technical Consultation to Identify a Structure and Strategy for the Development and Implementation of the Global Record of Fishing Vessels, Refrigerated Transport Vessels and Supply Vessels, Rome, 8–12 November 2010, FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Report No. 956 (FIRO/R956 (En)).

Requests States and relevant international bodies to develop, in accordance with international law, more effective measures to trace fish and fishery products to enable importing States to identify fish or fishery products caught in a manner that undermines international conservation and management measures agreed in accordance with international law, taking into account the special requirements of developing States and the forms of cooperation with developing States as set out in article 25 of the Agreement, and at the same time to recognize the importance of market access, in accordance with provisions 11.2.4, 11.2.5 and 11.2.6 of the Code, for fish and fishery products caught in a manner that is in conformity with such international measures;

Requests States to take the necessary measures, consistent with international law, to help to prevent fish and fishery products caught in a manner that undermines applicable conservation and management measures adopted in accordance with international law from entering international trade;

Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to report on the state of progress in the development of best practice guidelines for catch documentation schemes and traceability, for inclusion in the report of the Secretary-General on fisheries to the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session;

Encourages States to establish and undertake cooperative surveillance and enforcement activities in accordance with international law to strengthen and enhance efforts to ensure compliance with conservation and management measures, and prevent and deter illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing;

Urges States, directly and through regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to develop and adopt effective monitoring, control and surveillance measures for trans-shipment, as appropriate, in particular at-sea trans-shipment, in order to, inter alia, monitor compliance, collect and verify fisheries data, and to prevent and suppress illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities, in accordance with international law, and, in parallel, to encourage and support the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in studying the current practices of trans-shipment and produce a set of guidelines for this purpose;

Expresses its appreciation for financial contributions from States to improve the capacity of the existing voluntary International Monitoring, Control and Surveillance Network for Fisheries-Related Activities, and encourages States to join and actively participate in the Network and to consider supporting, when appropriate, its transformation in accordance with international law into an international unit with dedicated resources to further assist Network members, taking into account the forms of cooperation with developing States as set out in article 25 of the Agreement;

Encourages participation in the third Global Fisheries Enforcement Training Workshop, for the African region, to be held in Maputo from 28 February to 4 March 2011, supported by the International Monitoring, Control and Surveillance Network, the Secretariat of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Partnership for African Fisheries of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development²⁰ and the Government of Mozambique, in order to share information, experiences and technologies, foster coordination and improve skills among enforcement officials;

²⁰A/57/304, annex.

VI.Fishing overcapacity

Calls upon States to commit themselves to urgently reducing the capacity of the world’s fishing fleets to levels commensurate with the sustainability of fish stocks, through the establishment of target levels and plans or other appropriate mechanisms for ongoing capacity assessment, while avoiding the transfer of fishing capacity to other fisheries or areas in a manner that undermines the sustainable management of fish stocks, including those areas where fish stocks are overexploited or in a depleted condition, and recognizing in this context the legitimate rights of developing States to develop their fisheries for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks consistent with article 25 of the Agreement, article 5 of the Code, and paragraph 10 of the International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity;7

Reiterates its call upon States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to ensure that the urgent actions required in the International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity are undertaken expeditiously and that its implementation is facilitated without delay;

Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to report on the state of progress in the implementation of the International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity, as provided for in paragraph 48 of the Plan of Action;

Calls upon States individually and, as appropriate, through subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements with competence to regulate highly migratory species, urgently to address global fishing capacity for tunas, inter alia, in a way that recognizes the legitimate rights of developing States, in particular small island developing States, to participate in and benefit from such fisheries, taking into account the recommendations of the Joint Tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organizations International Workshop on RFMO Management of Tuna Fisheries, held in Brisbane, Australia, from 29 June to 1 July 2010;

Encourages those States which are cooperating to establish subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, taking into account the best scientific information available as well as the precautionary approach, to exercise voluntary restraint of fishing effort levels in those areas that will come under the regulation of the future organizations and arrangements until adequate regional conservation and management measures are adopted and implemented, taking into account the need to ensure the long-term conservation, management and sustainable use of the relevant fish stocks and to prevent significant adverse impacts on vulnerable marine ecosystems;

Urges States to eliminate subsidies that contribute to overfishing and overcapacity and to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, including by accelerating work to complete World Trade Organization negotiations on fisheries subsidies in accordance with the 2001 Doha Ministerial Declaration²¹ to clarify and improve and the 2005 Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration²² to strengthen disciplines on fisheries subsidies, taking into account the importance of the fisheries sector, including small-scale and artisanal fisheries, to developing countries;

²¹A/C.2/56/7, annex.

²²World Trade Organization, document WT/MIN(05)/DEC. Available from http://docsonline.wto.org.

VII.Large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing

Expresses concern that, despite the adoption of General Assembly resolution 46/215 of 20 December 1991, the practice of large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing still exists and remains a threat to marine living resources;

Urges States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to adopt effective measures, or strengthen existing measures, to implement and enforce the provisions of resolution 46/215 and subsequent resolutions on large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing in order to eliminate the use of large-scale pelagic drift nets in all seas and oceans, which means that efforts to implement resolution 46/215 should not result in the transfer to other parts of the world of drift nets that contravene the resolution;

Also urges States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to adopt effective measures, or strengthen existing measures, to implement and enforce the present global moratorium on the use of large-scale pelagic drift nets on the high seas, and calls upon States to ensure that vessels flying their flag that are duly authorized to use large-scale drift nets in waters under their national jurisdiction do not use such gear for fishing while on the high seas;

Reaffirms the request in paragraph 6 of resolution 46/215 for the submission of information to the Secretary-General and requests the Secretary-General to include this information in his report to the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session;

VIII.Fisheries by-catch and discards

Urges States, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and other relevant international organizations that have not done so to take action, including with consideration of the interests of developing coastal States and, as appropriate, subsistence fishing communities, to reduce or eliminate by-catch, catch by lost or abandoned gear, fish discards and post-harvest losses, including juvenile fish, consistent with international law and relevant international instruments, including the Code, and in particular to consider measures including, as appropriate, technical measures related to fish size, mesh size or gear, discards, closed seasons and areas and zones reserved for selected fisheries, particularly artisanal fisheries, the establishment of mechanisms for communicating information on areas of high concentration of juvenile fish, taking into account the importance of ensuring the confidentiality of such information, and support for studies and research that will reduce or eliminate by-catch of juvenile fish, and to ensure that these measures are implemented so as to optimize their effectiveness;

Urgently calls upon States, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and, where appropriate, other relevant international organizations to develop and implement effective management measures to reduce the incidence of catch of non-target species;

Calls upon States, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to adopt or improve measures to assess the impact of their fisheries on species caught as by-catch and to improve the comprehensiveness and accuracy of information and reporting on incidental catch of species caught as by-catch, including through adequate observer coverage and the use of modern technologies, and to provide assistance to developing States to meet data collection and reporting obligations;

Encourages States and entities referred to in the Convention and in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Agreement to give due consideration to participation, as appropriate, in subregional and regional instruments and organizations with mandates to conserve non-target species taken incidentally in fishing operations;

Encourages States to strengthen, if necessary, the capacity of those subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in which they participate to ensure the adequate conservation of non-target species taken incidentally in fishing operations, taking into consideration best practices for non-target species management, and to expedite their ongoing efforts in this regard;

Requests States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements urgently to implement, as appropriate, the measures recommended in the 2004 Guidelines to Reduce Sea Turtle Mortality in Fishing Operations²³ and the International Plan of Action for Reducing Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Longline Fisheries of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations7 in order to prevent the decline of sea turtles and seabird populations by minimizing by-catch and increasing post-release survival in their fisheries, including through research and development of gear and bait alternatives, promoting the use of available by-catch mitigation technology, and establishing and strengthening data-collection programmes to obtain standardized information to develop reliable estimates of the by-catch of these species;

²³Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Report of the Technical Consultation on Sea Turtles Conservation and Fisheries, Bangkok, 29 November–2 December 2004, FAO Fisheries Report No. 765 (FIRM/R765 (En)), appendix E.

Recalls paragraph 85 of resolution 64/72, and notes with satisfaction that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has published the best practices technical guidelines for the implementation of the International Plan of Action for Reducing Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Longline Fisheries on its website;²⁴

²⁴Available from www.fao.org/docrep/012/i1145e/i1145e00.pdf.

Requests States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to take urgent action to reduce the by-catch of seabirds, including albatrosses and petrels, in fisheries by adopting and implementing conservation measures that are consistent with recognized international guidelines;

IX.Subregional and regional cooperation

Urges coastal States and States fishing on the high seas, in accordance with the Convention, the Agreement and other relevant instruments, to pursue cooperation in relation to straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, either directly or through appropriate subregional or regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, to ensure the effective conservation and management of such stocks;

Urges States fishing for straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks on the high seas, and relevant coastal States, where a subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement has the competence to establish conservation and management measures for such stocks, to give effect to their duty to cooperate by becoming members of such an organization or participants in such an arrangement, or by agreeing to apply the conservation and management measures established by such an organization or arrangement, or to otherwise ensure that no vessel flying their flag is authorized to access the fisheries resources to which regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements or conservation and management measures established by such organizations or arrangements apply;

Invites, in this regard, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to ensure that all States having a real interest in the fisheries concerned may become members of such organizations or participants in such arrangements, in accordance with the Convention, the Agreement and the Code;

Encourages relevant coastal States and States fishing on the high seas for a straddling fish stock or a highly migratory fish stock, where there is no subregional or regional fisheries management organization or arrangement to establish conservation and management measures for such stocks, to cooperate to establish such an organization or enter into another appropriate arrangement to ensure the conservation and management of such stocks, and to participate in the work of the organization or arrangement;

Urges all signatory States and other States whose vessels fish within the area of the Convention on the Conservation and Management of Fishery Resources in the South-East Atlantic Ocean²⁵ for fishery resources covered by that Convention to become parties to that Convention as a matter of priority and, in the interim, to ensure that vessels flying their flags fully comply with the measures adopted;

²⁵United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2221, No. 39489.

Encourages signatory States and States having a real interest to become parties to the South Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement, and urges those States to agree on and implement interim measures, including measures in accordance with paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and paragraphs 117, 119, 120, 122 and 123 of resolution 64/72, to ensure the conservation and management of the fisheries resources and their marine ecosystems and habitats in the area to which that Agreement applies until such time as that Agreement enters into force;

Takes note of recent efforts at the regional level to promote responsible fishing practices, including combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing;

Welcomes the recent signatures and ratification of the Convention on the Conservation and Management of High Seas Fishery Resources in the South Pacific Ocean, and encourages further signatures and ratifications of that Convention with a view to its early entry into force;

Encourages States, regional economic integration organizations and the entities referred to in article 1, paragraph 2 (b), of the Convention on the Conservation and Management of High Seas Fishery Resources in the South Pacific Ocean that participated in the negotiation of that Convention, to fully implement the voluntary interim measures that have been adopted to give effect to paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and to voluntarily restrain fishing effort and catches to avoid overexploitation of certain pelagic fisheries resources in the area to which that Convention will apply, until it has entered into force and conservation and management measures have been adopted, and to take into account the scientific advice given by the Science Working Group in the adoption of future interim measures that should apply to certain pelagic fisheries resources before the entry into force of that Convention;

Notes with satisfaction the progress of negotiations to establish a subregional and regional fisheries management organization in the North Pacific, urges States having a real interest to participate in and expedite such negotiations, and to apply provisions of the Convention and the Agreement to their work, and encourages those participants to implement fully interim measures adopted in accordance with paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and paragraphs 117, 119, 120, 122 and 123 of resolution 64/72;

Takes note of the ongoing efforts of the members of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission to strengthen the functioning of the Commission so that it can more effectively discharge its mandate, and invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to continue to provide members of the Commission with the necessary assistance to this end;

Welcomes with satisfaction the entry into force of the Convention for the Strengthening of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission Established by the 1949 Convention between the United States of America and the Republic of Costa Rica, and invites all those that may consent to be bound by that Convention to consider doing so, in accordance with its terms;

Urges further efforts by regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, as a matter of priority, in accordance with international law, to strengthen and modernize their mandates and the measures adopted by such organizations or arrangements, and to implement modern approaches to fisheries management, as reflected in the Agreement and other relevant international instruments, relying on the best scientific information available and application of the precautionary approach and incorporating an ecosystem approach to fisheries management and biodiversity considerations, including the conservation and management of ecologically related and dependent species and protection of their habitats, where these aspects are lacking, to ensure that they effectively contribute to long-term conservation and management and sustainable use of marine living resources, and welcomes those regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements that have taken steps in this direction;

100

Calls upon regional fisheries management organizations with the competence to conserve and manage highly migratory fish stocks that have not yet adopted effective conservation and management measures in line with the best scientific information available to conserve and manage stocks falling under their mandate to do so urgently;

101

Urges States to strengthen and enhance cooperation among existing and developing regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in which they participate, including increased communication and further coordination of measures, such as through the holding of joint consultations, and to strengthen integration, coordination and cooperation by such regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements with other relevant fisheries organizations, regional seas arrangements and other relevant international organizations;

102

Urges the five regional fisheries management organizations with competence to manage highly migratory species to continue to take measures to implement the Course of Actions adopted at the second joint meeting of tuna regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, encourages participation in the third joint meeting, to be held in La Jolla, United States of America, from 11 to 15 July 2011, and invites developing States parties to the Agreement to utilize the assistance available to them under the Agreement, as well as other available funding assistance, to facilitate their participation in that meeting;

103

Welcomes the outcomes of the joint tuna regional fisheries management organizations international workshops held in 2010 on improvement, harmonization and compatibility of monitoring, control and surveillance measures, management issues relating to by-catch, the provision of scientific advice and management of tuna fisheries, and encourages those organizations to actively consider the recommendations of the workshops;

104

Invites States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements with competence to manage straddling fish stocks to share experiences and good practices, for example by considering organizing joint meetings, where appropriate;

105

Urges regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to improve transparency and to ensure that their decision-making processes are fair and transparent, rely on the best scientific information available, incorporate the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches, address participatory rights, including through, inter alia, the development of transparent criteria for allocating fishing opportunities which reflects, where appropriate, the relevant provisions of the Agreement, taking due account, inter alia, of the status of the relevant stocks and the respective interests in the fishery;

106

Welcomes the fact that a number of regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements have completed performance reviews, and encourages the implementation, as appropriate, of the recommendations of their respective reviews as a matter of priority;

107

Urges States, through their participation in regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements that have not done so, to undertake, on an urgent basis, performance reviews of those regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, initiated either by the organization or arrangement itself or with external partners, including in cooperation with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, using transparent criteria based on the provisions of the Agreement and other relevant instruments, and taking into account the best practices of regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements and, as appropriate, any set of criteria developed by States or other regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, and encourages that such performance reviews include some element of independent evaluation and propose means for improving the functioning of the regional fisheries management organization or arrangement, as appropriate;

108

Encourages regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to make the results of those performance reviews publicly available and to discuss the results jointly;

109

Urges States to cooperate, taking into account those performance reviews, to develop best practice guidelines for regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and to apply, to the extent possible, those guidelines to organizations and arrangements in which they participate;

110

Encourages the development of regional guidelines for States to use in establishing sanctions for non-compliance by vessels flying their flag and by their nationals, to be applied in accordance with national law, that are adequate in severity for effectively securing compliance, deterring further violations and depriving offenders of the benefits deriving from their illegal activities, as well as in evaluating their systems of sanctions to ensure that they are effective in securing compliance and deterring violations;

X.Responsible fisheries in the marine ecosystem

111

Encourages States to apply by 2010 the ecosystem approach, in accordance with paragraph 30 (d) of the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

112

Urges States, individually or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to continue their efforts to apply an ecosystem approach to fisheries;

113

Encourages States, individually or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and other relevant international organizations, to work to ensure that fisheries and other ecosystem data collection is performed in a coordinated and integrated manner, facilitating incorporation into global observation initiatives, where appropriate;

114

Calls upon States and regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements, working in cooperation with other relevant organizations, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission and the World Meteorological Organization, to adopt, as appropriate, measures to protect ocean data buoy systems moored in areas beyond national jurisdiction from actions that impair their operation;

115

Encourages States to increase scientific research in accordance with international law on the marine ecosystem;

116

Calls upon States, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and other specialized agencies, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, where appropriate, and other appropriate intergovernmental bodies, to cooperate in achieving sustainable aquaculture, including through information exchange, developing equivalent standards on such issues as aquatic animal health and human health and safety concerns, assessing the potential positive and negative impacts of aquaculture, including socio-economics, on the marine and coastal environment, including biodiversity, and adopting relevant methods and techniques to minimize and mitigate adverse effects, and in this regard encourages the implementation of the 2007 Strategy and Outline Plan for Improving Information on Status and Trends of Aquaculture of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,²⁶ as a framework for the improvement and understanding of aquaculture status and trends;

²⁶Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Decisions and Recommendations of the Third Session of the Sub-Committee on Aquaculture, Twenty-seventh Session of the Committee on Fisheries, Rome, 5–9 March 2007 (COFI/2007/5), appendix.

117

Calls upon States to take action immediately, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, and consistent with the precautionary approach and ecosystem approaches, to implement the 2008 International Guidelines for the Management of Deep-sea Fisheries in the High Seas of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (“the Guidelines”)²⁷ in order to sustainably manage fish stocks and protect vulnerable marine ecosystems, including seamounts, hydrothermal vents and cold water corals, from destructive fishing practices, recognizing the immense importance and value of deep sea ecosystems and the biodiversity they contain;

²⁷Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Report of the Technical Consultation on International Guidelines for the Management of Deep-sea Fisheries in the High Seas, Rome, 4–8 February and 25–29 August 2008, FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Report No. 881 (FIEP/R881 (Tri)), appendix F.

118

Reaffirms paragraphs 113 to 130 of resolution 64/72 addressing the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems and the long-term sustainability of deep sea fish stocks, and urges States and relevant regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to fully implement the actions called for in those paragraphs;

119

Also reaffirms that nothing in the paragraphs of its resolutions 61/105 and 64/72 addressing the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems prejudices the sovereign rights of coastal States over their continental shelf or the exercise of the jurisdiction of coastal States with respect to their continental shelf under international law as reflected in the Convention, in particular article 77 thereof;

120

Welcomes the substantial ongoing work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations related to the management of deep sea fisheries in the high seas and the protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems, and urges States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to ensure that their actions in sustainably managing deep sea fisheries and implementing paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and paragraphs 119 to 124 of resolution 64/72 are consistent with the Guidelines;

121

Takes note of the convening of a workshop on implementing the Guidelines in Busan, Republic of Korea, from 10 to 12 May 2010, and invites the secretariat of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to make the report of the workshop available;

122

Requests the Secretary-General, in cooperation with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, to report to the General Assembly at its sixty-sixth session on the actions taken by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in response to paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and paragraphs 113 to 117 and 119 to 127 of resolution 64/72, in order to facilitate the further review of the actions taken referred to in paragraph 129 of resolution 64/72;

123

Encourages accelerated progress to establish criteria on the objectives and management of marine protected areas for fisheries purposes, and in this regard welcomes the proposed work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to develop technical guidelines in accordance with the Convention and the Code on the design, implementation and testing of marine protected areas for such purposes, and urges coordination and cooperation among all relevant international organizations and bodies;

124

Urges all States to implement the 1995 Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities²⁸ and to accelerate activity to safeguard the marine ecosystem, including fish stocks, against pollution and physical degradation;

²⁸See A/51/116, annex II.

125

Acknowledges the serious environmental impacts on the marine environment caused by abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear, welcomes the 2009 report by the United Nations Environment Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,²⁹ and encourages States to take action to reduce such gear, noting the recommendations of the report;

²⁹Available from www.fao.org/docrep/011/i0620e/i0620e00.htm.

126

Reaffirms the importance it attaches to paragraphs 77 to 81 of resolution 60/31 of 29 November 2005 concerning the issue of lost, abandoned or discarded fishing gear and related marine debris and the adverse impacts such debris and derelict fishing gear have on, inter alia, fish stocks, habitats and other marine species, and urges accelerated progress by States and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements in implementing those paragraphs of the resolution;

127

Encourages further studies, including by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, on the impacts of underwater noise on fish stocks and fishing catch rates, as well as associated socio-economic effects;

128

Calls upon States, including through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to play an active role in global efforts to conserve and sustainably use marine living resources, so as to contribute to marine biological diversity;

129

Encourages States, either individually or through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, as appropriate, to identify any spawning and nursery areas for fish stocks under their jurisdiction or competence and, where required, to adopt science-based measures to conserve such stocks during these critical life stages;

XI.Capacity-building

130

Reiterates the crucial importance of cooperation by States directly or, as appropriate, through the relevant subregional and regional organizations, and by other international organizations, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations through its FishCode programme, including through financial and/or technical assistance, in accordance with the Agreement, the Compliance Agreement, the Code and its associated international plans of action,7 to increase the capacity of developing States to achieve the goals and implement the actions called for in the present resolution;

131

Welcomes the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in developing guidance on the strategies and measures required for the creation of an enabling environment for small-scale fisheries, including the development of a code of conduct and guidelines for enhancing the contribution of small-scale fisheries to poverty alleviation and food security that include adequate provisions with regard to financial measures and capacity-building, including transfer of technology, and encourages studies for creating possible alternative livelihoods for coastal communities;

132

Encourages increased capacity-building and technical assistance by States, international financial institutions and relevant intergovernmental organizations and bodies for fishers, in particular small-scale fishers, in developing countries, and in particular small island developing States, consistent with environmental sustainability, in recognition of the fact that food security and livelihoods may depend on fisheries;

133

Encourages the international community to enhance the opportunities for sustainable development in developing countries, in particular the least developed countries, small island developing States and coastal African States, by encouraging greater participation of those States in authorized fisheries activities being undertaken within areas under their national jurisdiction, in accordance with the Convention, by distant-water fishing nations in order to achieve better economic returns for developing countries from their fisheries resources within areas under their national jurisdiction and an enhanced role in regional fisheries management, as well as by enhancing the ability of developing countries to develop their own fisheries, as well as to participate in high seas fisheries, including access to such fisheries, in conformity with international law, in particular the Convention and the Agreement, and taking into account article 5 of the Code;

134

Requests distant-water fishing nations, when negotiating access agreements and arrangements with developing coastal States, to do so on an equitable and sustainable basis, including by giving greater attention to fish processing and fish-processing facilities within the national jurisdiction of the developing coastal State to assist the realization of the benefits from the development of fisheries resources, and also the transfer of technology and assistance for monitoring, control and surveillance and compliance and enforcement within areas under the national jurisdiction of the developing coastal State providing fisheries access, taking into account the forms of cooperation set out in article 25 of the Agreement and article 5 of the Code;

135

Encourages States, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to provide greater assistance and to promote coherence in such assistance for developing States in designing, establishing and implementing relevant agreements, instruments and tools for the conservation and sustainable management of fish stocks, including in designing and strengthening their domestic regulatory fisheries policies and those of regional fisheries management organizations or arrangements in their regions, and the enhancement of research and scientific capabilities through existing funds, such as the Assistance Fund under Part VII of the Agreement, bilateral assistance, regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements assistance funds, the FishCode programme, the World Bank’s global programme on fisheries and the Global Environment Facility;

136

Encourages States to provide technical and financial support to developing countries to address their special requirements and challenges in implementing the Guidelines;

137

Calls upon States to promote, through continuing dialogue and the assistance and cooperation provided in accordance with articles 24 to 26 of the Agreement, further ratification of or accession to the Agreement by seeking to address, inter alia, the issue of lack of capacity and resources that might stand in the way of developing States becoming parties;

138

Notes with appreciation the compilation prepared by the Secretariat of the needs of developing States for capacity-building and assistance in the conservation and management of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks and the sources of available assistance for developing States to address such needs;³⁰

³⁰Available from www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/fishstocksmeetings/compilation2009updated.pdf.

139

Encourages States, regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements and other relevant bodies to assist developing States in the implementation of the actions called for in paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and paragraphs 113, 117 and 119 to 124 of resolution 64/72;

140

Urges States and regional economic integration organizations, individually and through regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to mainstream efforts to assist developing States, in particular the least developed and small island developing States, with other relevant international development strategies with a view to enhancing international coordination to enable them to develop their national capacity to exploit fishery resources, consistent with the duty to ensure the conservation and management of those resources, and in this regard requests the Secretary-General to fully mobilize and coordinate the agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system, including at the level of the regional economic commissions, within their respective mandates;

141

Requests States and regional fisheries management organizations to develop strategies to further assist developing States, in particular the least developed and small island developing States, in fully realizing the benefits from the catch of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks and in strengthening regional efforts to sustainably conserve and manage such stocks, and in this regard, to make available such information;

XII.Cooperation within the United Nations system

142

Requests the relevant parts of the United Nations system, international financial institutions and donor agencies to support increased enforcement and compliance capabilities for regional fisheries management organizations and their member States;

143

Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to continue its cooperative arrangements with United Nations agencies on the implementation of the international plans of action and to report to the Secretary-General, for inclusion in his annual report on sustainable fisheries, on priorities for cooperation and coordination in this work;

XIII.Sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly

144

Requests the Secretary-General to bring the present resolution to the attention of all States, relevant intergovernmental organizations, the organizations and bodies of the United Nations system, subregional and regional fisheries management organizations and relevant non-governmental organizations, and to invite States and regional economic integration organizations and regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements to submit detailed information to the Secretary-General in a timely manner on actions taken pursuant to paragraphs 80 and 83 to 87 of resolution 61/105 and paragraphs 113 to 117 and 119 to 127 of resolution 64/72 to facilitate a further review of such actions;

145

Also requests the Secretary-General to bring the present resolution to the attention of the Inter-agency Consultative Group on Small Island Developing States in the context of paragraph 140 of the present resolution;

146

Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its sixty-sixth session, under the item entitled “Oceans and the law of the sea”, the sub-item entitled “Sustainable fisheries, including through the 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments”, and to consider the possibility of including this sub-item in future provisional agendas on a biennial basis.