1. What is Conxemar and why did it decide to attend SPRFMO?
Conxemar is the Spanish Association of Wholesalers, Importers, Processors and Exporters of Fishery and Aquaculture Products. It represents an important part of the seafood value chain in Spain and Europe, especially in processing and trade.
Our work is closely linked to the monitoring of fisheries, trade and regulatory policies that affect the supply of raw materials, the sustainability of resources and the competitiveness of the European processing industry.
Conxemar decided to attend the annual Commission meeting of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO), held in Panama City, March 2-6, 2026, because the decisions taken in this organization have a direct impact on a strategic species for our industry: jumbo flying squid. For many Spanish and European companies, jumbo flying squid is an essential natural resource. It is used in many formats and processed products, and it has a very important presence in the Spanish market.
For this reason, we considered it important for the seafood value chain to be present in international discussions on the management of this fishery. The sustainability of the resource is fundamental, but so are stable supply, legal certainty and the need for decisions to take into account the impact on producers, processors, traders and consumers.
2. Why is squid an important species for Conxemar, Spain and Europe?
Jumbo flying squid is a key species for the Spanish processing industry. Spain is one of the main European markets for this product, and many Conxemar member companies depend on a stable, legal and sustainable supply of this natural resource.
Its importance is not limited to imports. Jumbo flying squid creates in both Spain and around the world industrial activity, employment, added value and an accessible source of marine protein for consumers. It is part of a broad value chain that includes international operators, importers, processing plants, distributors, retail and food service.
At European level, it is also a relevant species because it helps diversify the seafood supply. In a context where Europe depends heavily on seafood imports, ensuring the sustainable management of jumbo flying squid is important both for the conservation of the resource and for food security and the competitiveness of the industry.
3. What was Conxemar’s experience at SPRFMO like? What did we learn?
The experience was very positive and useful. It allowed us to better understand how SPRFMO works, how the positions of the different delegations are developed, and how negotiations really take place inside a regional fisheries management organization.
One of the main lessons was that informal conversations, bilateral meetings and side discussions are often as important as the formal sessions. These spaces make it possible to better explain the concerns of the industry, provide context and understand the priorities of each delegation or observer.
We also saw that the position defended by a delegation in a RFMO does not always fully reflect the needs of all the actors in its own country or market. That is why it is important for stakeholders, including members of the seafood supply chain, to participate directly when possible, in order to bring a complementary view and explain how management decisions affect supply chains, processing and the market.
During the meeting, we had the opportunity to speak with different delegations and observers, including The Pew Charitable Trusts and CALAMASUR. With them, we shared the concern about the need to move towards stronger, science-based and precautionary management of jumbo flying squid. These contacts were very useful to identify areas of cooperation and to better understand how Conxemar can add value in future meetings.
4. What were the main results of the meeting?
The meeting brought important progress, although it is still not enough to ensure fully effective management of jumbo flying squid.
On squid management, members adopted amendments to the conservation and management measure for this fishery. The decision reduces the authorized fishing effort limits by 15%, both in terms of fleet size and tonnage.
This is a positive step because it shows a willingness to move towards more precautionary management. However, its real impact on fishing pressure may be limited. The reason is that some fleets are not currently using all the capacity they were allowed to use before the amendment. For example, China, which is the main fleet authorized in this fishery, has around 20% fewer vessels operating than it could have under the previous limits. Therefore, a 15% reduction does not necessarily mean a real reduction in actual fishing effort.
The main problem continues to be the lack of sufficient scientific advice on the status of the stock. This lack of information makes it harder to adopt more ambitious measures. Even so, it is important that members agreed to consider new precautionary measures in 2027, even if there is still no conclusive scientific advice from the Scientific Committee.
In addition, a scientific work plan was approved. This includes the development of management strategy evaluation (MSE) and a harvest control rule (HCR) for jumbo flying squid. This is important because it can create the basis for more predictable, data-based and long-term management. The Commission also accepted the recommendation of the independent performance review panel to move towards harvest strategies for all its fisheries. It was also rightly recognized that this approach should not be the same for every species, but should be adapted to the characteristics of each fishery. A working group will now discuss the timing and conditions for implementing these recommendations.
Another relevant result was the adoption of a measure to establish standards for electronic monitoring. SPRFMO has therefore become the first non-tuna RFMO to approve this type of framework. This decision will allow electronic monitoring to be used to meet the new requirements for increased observer coverage in the jumbo flying squid fishery from 2027. It will also help improve the collection of scientific data and compliance control.
5. What is Conxemar’s view on these results?
Conxemar’s view is cautious. The results show a positive direction and open the way towards more structured, science-based and sustainable management of jumbo flying squid, but they are still not enough.
The 15% reduction in effort limits is a political step forward, but it will probably not significantly reduce real fishing pressure. For this reason, it will be essential for SPRFMO to continue moving towards more ambitious measures, based on the precautionary principle and supported by better scientific knowledge. This is also why Conxemar will continue to participate in SPRFMO.
For Conxemar, the sustainable management of jumbo flying squid must be based on three pillars: good science, effective precautionary measures and the participation of the whole value chain.
6. Why will Conxemar continue to engage with SPRFMO?
Conxemar will continue to engage with SPRFMO because the decisions taken in this organization will be very important for the future of jumbo flying squid and for the industry that depends on this species. For this reason, we have already requested Conxemar’s inclusion as an accredited observer in SPRFMO.
Our intention is to continue working before the next Commission meeting in March 2027, especially in three areas: maintaining contact with delegations and observers, cooperating with organizations such as CALAMASUR and Pew, and continuing to bring the perspective of the European processing and trading industry.
We also want to help ensure that the discussion on jumbo flying squid includes not only the fishing dimension, but also the reality of markets, processing, employment and food supply. Sustainable management needs to understand the whole chain.
7. Was it useful to attend SPRFMO? Would Conxemar recommend that other industry members participate?
Our conclusion is that the seafood industry should be more present in these international forums. The decisions taken in regional fisheries management organizations have direct consequences for supply, companies, workers and consumers. For this reason, when possible, it is useful and recommendable for other actors in the value chain to participate as well.
The sustainability of fishery resources is not only a fisheries management issue. It is also a value chain issue, a food security issue, an employment issue and a shared responsibility. For this reason, Conxemar considers that its presence at SPRFMO was valuable and will continue working to provide a constructive, responsible and long-term perspective.
Pablo Cadarso Rebolledo serves as Deputy Director of Conxemar, the Spanish Association of Wholesalers, Importers, Exporters and Processors of Fishery and Aquaculture Products. A qualified lawyer specialising in Maritime Law, he has professional experience in legal practice and marine insurance. His current areas of expertise include seafood market intelligence, international trade, regulatory affairs and the strategic challenges facing the Spanish and European seafood industry.
Blog originally published on FAO’s Common Oceans Program Newsroom.
Countries strengthen skills in management procedures through regional training
16/07/2026
15 -16 July 2026 – Antigua, Guatemala – Fisheries scientists and managers from across Central America gathered in Antigua for the first regional workshop on management procedures for sustainable fisheries, under the framework of the Organization of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector of the Central American Isthmus (OSPESCA).
The two‑day event forms part of a global series of capacity‑building workshops hosted by The Ocean Foundation (TOF) and supported by the GEF‑funded FAO Common Oceans Tuna Project, designed to strengthen science‑based decision‑making in tuna and tuna‑like fisheries.
Management procedures (MPs), also known as ‘harvest strategies’, are pre-agreed decision-making frameworks that determine allowable fishing levels under different stock conditions. They aim to keep fisheries within sustainable limits while reducing the risk of stock decline.
Management strategy evaluation (MSE) simulations are used to stress test MPs to assess their performance under uncertainties such as climate change, illegal fishing and data gaps. This approach supports more predictable management that can also reduce conflict in decision-making.
©FAO/Camilo Pareja
Previous capacity-building sessions have been held in the Seychelles, Egypt and the Pacific region, the latter led by the Pacific Community (SPC). The Guatemala workshop marks the first time this training has been offered in the Central American region.
“Many fisheries managers have heard about MSE and management procedures, but fewer have had the opportunity to gain the depth of knowledge needed to participate confidently in their development and application,” said Dr. David Die, the lead instructor of the workshop. “By strengthening the capacity of managers to engage constructively in these processes, we can accelerate the adoption of MPs and support more effective, transparent, and sustainable fisheries management for the benefit of all.”
Strengthening regional cooperation through OSPESCA
OSPESCA, a specialized institution of the Central American Integration System (SICA), coordinates sustainable fisheries frameworks across the region. Its mandate covers the national waters, inland waters and Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of its member states – Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic. The organization works to harmonize fisheries laws, design sustainable management policies and combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing.
“Strengthening technical capacity is essential for ensuring that management decisions are based on solid science,” said Bernal Chavarría, Coordinator of Fisheries Management and Policy at OSPESCA. “This workshop will provide our countries with the knowledge and tools to engage meaningfully in the decision-making process for our shared marine resources to ensure sustainable management.”
Applying the latest fisheries management methodologies
Participants included fisheries managers, scientists and technical officers from seven OSPESCA member countries. Prior to the workshop, they were asked to complete FAO’s e‑learning course series on management procedures for sustainable tuna fisheries. Building on that foundation, the training provided practical experience in applying the concepts to real‑world decision‑making.
The first day focused on developing and testing MPs. Participants explored management objectives, reference points, harvest control rules and performance indicators, as well as stakeholder roles and implementation considerations. The sessions were complemented by hands-on activities allowing participants to apply what they’d learned.
On the second day, experts from the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC ) and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) presented ongoing multi-stock MSE frameworks, currently under development to advance MPs for tropical tuna stocks. Participants discussed the technical aspects, opportunities and challenges of these approaches, helping prepare them for upcoming tRFMO meetings on MPs and MSEs.
A growing global movement toward robust management procedures
Management procedures are increasingly recognized as one of the most effective tools for long‑term, precautionary fisheries management. Their adoption has already delivered measurable gains in several tuna fisheries worldwide, helping rebuild stocks and stabilize catch levels.
The workshop in Guatemala contributes to a broader global effort to equip countries with the skills needed to design, test and implement MSE‑based management procedures. Through the guidance of OSPESCA leadership and the workshop, Central American countries are strengthening their ability to manage shared resources sustainably and cooperatively.
“This training represents an important step toward strengthening knowledge in our region,” said Yesuri Pino, a Biologist with the Aquatic Resources Authority of Panama. “It helps ensure that decisions are science-based and, at the same time, allows us to contribute to the implementation of management approaches that benefit both our fisheries and our communities.”
The workshop in Guatemala was hosted by The Ocean Foundation, with support from the Common Oceans Tuna Project, Oceankind, the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, and The Pew Charitable Trusts.
About the Common Oceans Tuna Project
Led by FAO and funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Common Oceans Tuna Project brings together all five tuna RFMOs, scientific institutions, governments, civil society and the private sector to promote responsible, efficient and sustainable tuna fisheries while conserving biodiversity in a changing ocean environment.
To learn more:
Photo by Vincent van Zeijst. CC BY-SA 3.0.
For more than a decade, fisheries managers in Norway, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland and Russia have driven the population of northeast Atlantic mackerel to a historic low. These coastal States, which co-manage the high seas mackerel fishery and are also Parties of the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission, have spent years wrangling over quota shares. And despite long-standing commitments to sustainable management, their combined catch is regularly soaring well in excess of the level that science calls for. The subsequent – and predictable – decline in stock size is a dire warning for the future of the fishery. Now these governments are taking renewed steps to develop a long-term management strategy (LTMS) that would recover the species and put it on a more sustainable trajectory. If well implemented, the strategy could help to reverse years of political gridlock over mackerel quotas.
Mismanagement has driven mackerel to an all-time low
As one of the northeast Atlantic’s key pelagic species, mackerel plays an important ecological role within the wider marine system, including as a prey for tuna and other commercial fish species and for marine mammals and seabirds. But since 2017, mackerel have been on a downward path, and little to no action is being taken to change course.
In 2015, 2017 and 2020, the coastal States asked the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the organization that provides scientific advice on fisheries management in the northeast Atlantic, to evaluate a new LTMS for the stock. But over the years, the mackerel fishing nations’ prevailing political priority has been to maximize national catch. And rather than focusing on the long-term health of the fishery, they allowed an existing scientifically evaluated LTMS to expire and failed to adopt a new precautionary one.
Some years, most parties agree to a total catch that’s in line with scientific advice but then go home and take unilateral catches that overshoot the agreed total, leading to overfishing. Through these actions, the coastal States consistently fail to consider the long-term health of the stock and fishery.
This inability to manage the mackerel stock in a precautionary way and with a long-term vision has led to the suspension of ecolabel certifications, an overfished stock and market actors suspending where they source their mackerel.
Figure 1: Boom and Bust of Atlantic Mackerel Driven by Poor Management Decisions
Excessive catches above scientific advice since 2008 and a lapsed long-term management strategy in the context of a changing environment and stock productivity (recruitment) has led to decline
Source: Adapted from ICES (2025) by adding contextual labels to a time-series plot of stock size (spawning stock biomass)
A new science-based management strategy evaluation could provide a path to recovery
The current state of mackerel can be reversed. Managers are realizing that a changing ocean means that stronger, smarter rules are required to recover the stock and ensure a more resilient fishery.
Specifically, climate-driven shifts in stock productivity and distribution, growing ecosystem pressures and competition over access are changing the context in which this fishery is managed. And managers need to consider the damage that mismanagement does not just to the mackerel population but to the broader region’s ecosystem as well.
Fortunately, we know what works: an LTMS (also known as a harvest strategy or management procedure) underpinned by a comprehensive management strategy evaluation (MSE).
An MSE is a critical part of a science-based decision-making framework. It involves stakeholder engagement and accounts for risks and trade-offs among competing objectives, such as maximizing catch and protecting stocks. Through computer simulations, an MSE can be used to assess the performance of a proposed LTMS under a range of environmental conditions and can include ecosystem considerations, such as how many fish should stay in the ocean to meet the needs of predators and other species. An MSE also allows managers to see how a fishery grows or declines in the face of a range of scenarios, therefore making it easier to choose the right LTMS, depending on their goals. For example, managers can ask if the management strategy is resilient to a period where fewer young fish are entering the fishery – and what that means for stock size or catches. They can also ask if the LTMS is robust to specific levels of excess catches and the continued failure to agree allocation.
Despite years of inaction, change may be coming. In early 2026, northeast Atlantic managers submitted a fourth advice request to ICES, asking for new information on a mackerel LTMS using MSE.
There is debate over the scope of the proposed MSE. A basic, single-stock MSE focused narrowly on stock status, yield and catch stability may represent progress compared with current management. But northeast Atlantic mackerel face challenges that go beyond what traditional management techniques can handle. As such, any MSE must respond to the shortfalls in implementation, such as excess catches, and should manage fisheries sustainably and with an ecosystem approach.
A new MSE should evaluate an LTMS that can:
Adopting an MSE-tested LTMS is the goal for 2026-27. Managers have made various global commitments to use marine resources sustainably and to protect biodiversity, and by making a change in mackerel management in the northeast Atlantic, they can show that they are serious about the ecosystem approach and moving towards science-based, sustainable fisheries management.
Ashley Wilson works on The Pew Charitable Trusts’ international fisheries project.
English below.
Un atelier sur les procédures de gestion (PG), également appelées stratégies de pêche (de l’anglais « harvest strategies »), pour les pêcheries de petits pélagiques en Afrique de l’Ouest s’est tenu les 19 et 20 mai à Nouakchott, République islamique de Mauritanie, sous le haut patronage de Son Excellence Moctar Ahmed Bouceif, ministre des Pêches, des Infrastructures maritimes et portuaires. Cet événement a été organisé par la Commission Sous-Régionale des Pêches (CSRP), avec le soutien de The Pew Charitable Trusts, accompagné par The Ocean Foundation », l’Institut mauritanien de recherches océanographiques et des pêches (IMROP) et l’Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD).
La CSRP est une organisation régionale des pêches (ORP) composée de sept États membres (Mauritanie, Sénégal, Gambie, Guinée-Bissau, Guinée, Sierra Leone et Cabo Verde). Elle a été créée il y a 40 ans afin d’harmoniser les politiques de ses États membres en matière de conservation et d’exploitation de leurs ressources halieutiques, et ainsi de renforcer leur coopération au bénéfice du bien-être de leurs populations respectives.
Cet atelier visait à présenter et renforcer l’intérêt autour des concepts de PG et d’évaluation des stratégies de gestion (ESG), ainsi que de la manière dont les PG et les ESG pourraient être mises en œuvre au service des pêcheries de petits pélagiques. Ceci afin d’améliorer la gestion partagée de ces espèces dans la sous-région et la région. Les participants comprenaient des gestionnaires et des scientifiques des États membres de la CSRP et du Royaume du Maroc, ainsi que des représentants du secteur de la pêche (artisanale et industrielle) et de plusieurs organisations non gouvernementales.
Les espèces de petits pélagiques d’Afrique du Nord-Ouest constituent l’un des éléments fondamentaux du grand écosystème marin du courant des Canaries (CCLME en anglais), l’un des quatre grands systèmes d’upwelling de bord Est du monde. Le CCLME recoupe les zones économiques exclusives des États membres de la CSRP. La plupart de ces espèces de petits pélagiques sont partagées par deux États membres ou plus et constituent une ressource essentielle pour la sécurité alimentaire, l’emploi et les revenus. Elles sont exploitées depuis des décennies par des flottilles locales et étrangères, relevant à la fois des segments artisanal et industriel.
L’état d’exploitation de ces stocks est évalué collectivement par les scientifiques des pays partageant le même stock au sein du Comité des pêches pour l’Atlantique Centre-Est (COPACE), qui a conclu dans son rapport 2025 que cinq des onze stocks exploités évalués se situaient dans les limites biologiquement durables (statut « pleinement exploité »), tandis que six stocks étaient considérés comme surexploités, notamment les stocks de sardinelle ronde et de sardine. La pression de pêche exercée sur nombre de ces stocks est trop élevée, du fait de l’activité combinée d’une importante flottille artisanale difficile à contrôler, d’une flottille côtière plus récente (senneurs semi-industriels) active dans certains pays, et d’une flottille industrielle (chalutiers pélagiques). Une partie de cette pression est alimentée par la demande des usines de farine et d’huile de poisson qui se sont développées dans certains de ces pays au cours des années 2010. Les facteurs environnementaux, notamment le changement climatique et les fluctuations climatiques, influencent également fortement la biologie et la répartition spatiale de ces espèces.
En matière de gouvernance des pêches, les gestionnaires et les parties prenantes de la sous-région présents à l’atelier ont souligné le besoin croissant de coopération et de coordination entre les pays pour répondre à ces défis. Cette perspective est pleinement cohérente avec le Plan stratégique 2025-2029 de la CSRP, qui identifie la solidarité sous-régionale, la gouvernance coordonnée et la gestion écosystémique des stocks halieutiques partagés comme des priorités essentielles pour assurer la durabilité à long terme des ressources halieutiques et la sécurité alimentaire.
Principaux enseignements de l’atelier
Cet atelier a constitué une étape importante pour renforcer la compréhension sous-régionale, les capacités techniques et le soutien politique nécessaires à l’avancement des PG et des ESG, principalement pour les pêcheries partagées. Les participants ont discuté des concepts de PG et ESG à travers plusieurs exemples provenant d’autres régions (principalement des pays occidentaux mais aussi d’Afrique du Sud) et ont débattu, en se basant sur le cas de la sardinelle ronde, des premières étapes à entreprendre si les États membres de la CSRP souhaitaient mener une PG et une ESG pour cette espèce.
Les participants ont convenu que la mise en œuvre d’une PG et d’une ESG pour un ou plusieurs stocks clés de petits pélagiques constituerait un moyen important d’appuyer les progrès récents accomplis dans l’élaboration de plans de gestion au niveau national dans les États membre de la CSRP (un processus soutenu en partie par le programme EAF-Nansen) et au royaume du Maroc. Ces plans de gestion sont complexes à mettre en œuvre pour les États membres et une solution pour les rendre plus efficients est de travailler au niveau sous-régional à une meilleure coordination entre ces plans, un processus en cours dans lequel la CSRP est engagée à travers le projet Shared Sardinella. Dans ce contexte, les PG et les ESG pourraient offrir un cadre précieux pour faciliter les discussions sur une vision commune à long terme, des objectifs de gestion partagés et des compromis acceptables entre les parties prenantes et entre les États membres concernés. À plus long terme, nous souhaiterions que cette approche soit progressivement étendue à d’autres pêcheries prioritaires et stocks partagés de la sous-région, notamment les céphalopodes (par exemple Octopus vulgaris) à fort intérêt commercial et les espèces démersales (par exemple Pseudotolithus senegalensis, Epinephelus aeneus) largement consommées dans les Etats membres.
Perspectives
À l’avenir, un deuxième atelier entre les États membres de la CSRP pourrait examiner les défis scientifiques et de gestion propres à la sous-région qui doivent être relevés afin de progresser dans l’élaboration d’une PG pour une ou plusieurs pêcheries clés de petits pélagiques. Cela impliquerait de traiter, par la même, des défis techniques spécifiques, notamment le manque de données et la parfois faible standardisation entre les données nationales, ainsi que l’harmonisation des mesures de gestion ; par exemple, la manière dont une PG pour un stock s’articulerait avec le processus actuel d’élaboration des plans de gestion nationaux.
L’utilisation de l’ESG et des PG pourrait changer la donne pour les stocks de petits pélagiques et leur gestion dans la sous-région, grâce à un processus vertueux associant l’ensemble des acteurs concernés autour de l’objectif d’améliorer la gouvernance partagée de ces ressources. Ces outils pourraient également renforcer le rôle de la CSRP en tant qu’institution chef de file pour conserver et exploiter durablement ces espèces d’une importance écologique et économique vitale.
Patrice Brehmer, Conseiller scientifique du Secrétaire permanent de la Commission Sous-Régionale des Pêches. Directeur de recherche, IRD.
Mohamed Ahmed Jeyid, Chef du département « Suivi et évaluation des ressources halieutiques », IMROP.
A workshop on management procedures (MPs), also known as harvest strategies, for small pelagic fisheries in West Africa was held on 19-20 May in Nouakchott, Islamic Republic of Mauritania, under the high patronage of His Excellency Moctar Ahmed Bouceif, Minister of Fisheries, Maritime and Port Infrastructure. This event was organized by the Sub-Regional Fisheries Commission (SRFC) with support from the following partners: The Pew Charitable Trusts, The Ocean Foundation, the Institut Mauritanien de Recherches Océanographiques et des Pêches (IMROP), and Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD).
The SRFC is a regional fisheries organization composed of seven member states (Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Cabo Verde) that was created in 1985 to harmonize the policies of its members regarding the conservation and exploitation of their fisheries resources, and to strengthen their cooperation for the benefit of the well-being of their respective populations.
This workshop focused on building sub-regional understanding of MPs and management strategy evaluation (MSE) concepts, and how MPs and MSE could be applied to fisheries for small pelagic fishes to help improve the shared management of these species in the sub-region. Attendees included managers and scientists from the SRFC member countries and the Kingdom of Morocco, as well as representatives from the fishing sector and from non-governmental organizations.
West African small pelagic fish species are a building block of the Canary Current Large Marine Ecosystem (CCLME), one of the four major Eastern Boundary upwelling systems in the world. The CCLME broadly overlaps with the exclusive economic zones of the SRFC member states. Most of these small pelagic species are shared by two or more member states and are a key resource for food security, employment and income. Both local and foreign fleets have exploited them for decades, by small-scale and industrial segments.
The status of these stocks is assessed collectively by scientists from the countries sharing the same stock within the Fishery Committee for the Eastern Central Atlantic (CECAF), which concluded in its 2025 report that five out of eleven assessed exploited fish stocks were within biologically sustainable limits (status of ‘fully exploited’) while six stocks were considered overexploited, including the stocks of round sardinella and sardine/pilchard. There is high fishing pressure on many of these stocks by a large and difficult to control artisanal fleet, a more recent coastal fleet (semi-industrial purse seiners) active in some countries, and an industrial fleet (pelagic trawlers). Some of this pressure is being driven by the demand for fish meal and fish oil factories that developed in some of these countries in the 2010’s. Environmental factors, including climate change and fluctuations, also strongly influence the biology and spatial distribution of these species. As for fisheries governance, managers and stakeholders in the sub-region point out the increasing need for cooperation and coordination among countries in their response to these challenges. This perspective is fully consistent with the SRFC Strategic Plan 2025–2029, which identifies sub-regional solidarity, coordinated governance, and ecosystem-based management of shared fish stocks as key priorities for ensuring the long-term sustainability of fisheries resources and food security.
Main takeaways from the workshop
This workshop was an important step in building the sub-regional understanding, technical capacity, and political support needed to advance MPs and MSE for shared fisheries. The participants discussed the concepts of MP and MSE through several examples from other regions and debated, using the case study of round sardinella, what first steps to take if the SRFC member states wanted to conduct an MSE for this species.
Participants agreed that conducting an MSE for one or several key small pelagic stocks would be an important way to support the recent progress on management plans at national level in the sub-region and Morocco, a process in part supported by the EAF-Nansen programme. While these management plans are complex to implement, the next step is to work at the sub-regional level on improved coordination between these plans, an ongoing process in which SRFC is enrolled through the Shared Sardinella project. In this context, MPs and MSEs could provide a valuable framework to facilitate discussions on a shared long-term vision, common management objectives, and acceptable trade-offs among stakeholders and countries. In the longer term, this approach could also be progressively extended to other priority fisheries and shared stocks in the sub-region, including cephalopods (e.g. Octopus vulgaris) and demersal species (e.g. Pseudotolithus senegalensis, Epinephelus aeneus).
Looking ahead
Looking ahead, a second workshop of SRFC member states could examine the scientific and management challenges specific to the sub-region that need to be addressed in order to progress the development of an MP for one or more key small pelagic fisheries. This would entail addressing specific technical challenges, including the lack of data and of standardization between national data, as well as management considerations; for example, how an MP for a stock would fit in the current process of national management plan development.
The use of MSE and MPs has the potential to change the picture for small pelagic stocks and their management in the sub-region, through a process that includes all the relevant actors towards the goal of improving the shared governance of these resources. These tools could also strengthen the SRFC’s role as the leading institution to conserve and sustainably exploit these ecologically and economically vital species.
Patrice Brehmer, Scientific Advisor of the Permanent Secretary of the Sub-Regional Fisheries Commission, Senior Researcher, IRD.
Mohamed Ahmed Jeyid, Head of Department, « Suivi et évaluation des ressources halieutiques », IMROP.
Photo by Rod Waddington. CC BY-SA 2.0.
The management procedure (MP) framework — management objectives, reference points, harvest control rules (HCRs), and MPs — is current best practice in fisheries management, replacing traditional reactive management with a proactive approach based on a pre-agreed decision framework.
MPs – also known as harvest strategies – have themselves undergone a significant evolution. It was not that long ago that MPs were less known and even lesser used in fisheries, particularly internationally managed ones. Then, they became the domain of a handful of well-monitored fisheries, slowly becoming mainstream fisheries management. The key to the success of MPs is their ability to simulate future scenarios and test management approach effectiveness, therefore providing confidence in the pre-agreed decision rules.
MPs have also progressively been adapted to more data-limited contexts with empirical MPs, including catch per unit effort (CPUE) and length-based HCRs. Each step has extended the reach of the MP discipline to stocks that would previously have been considered unmanageable under this kind of framework.
The next frontier is the stocks that are beyond even those adapted methods: fisheries where a reliable CPUE series is not available, and where conventional data-limited approaches are quantitatively impossible (i.e. it is not possible to build a simulation system to test potential management decisions).
The standard response in these cases in international fisheries is to apply precautionary catch limits derived from historical averages and move on – or set no limits at all and hope for the best. Aspects of that approach are defensible as an interim measure. As a permanent management approach, though, it forgoes many of the benefits an MP framework is designed to provide.
The question is then: How can the benefits of an MP be realised when it is not possible to construct and quantitatively test an MP? How can we take those MP principles and apply them to a greater number of fisheries?
The Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA) is exploring that very question in an internationally novel way.
SIOFA is an organisation with a significant management challenge. It is responsible for more than 100+ species under its mandate, many of which are smaller fisheries or are severely data challenged. For SIOFA, a substantial proportion of stocks fall into this category — stocks for which the quantitative toolkit, even in its most adapted data-limited forms, simply does not work.
SIOFA’s new Precautionary Approach and Management (PAM) Framework, under development through its Scientific Committee and funded by the EU, seeks to address this directly. It is attuned to the fact that it has this full diversity of stocks of varying commercial importance, and with different levels of data quality. Some stocks will justify significant ongoing scientific investment. Others are lower priority — but that does not mean SIOFA can afford to ignore them. A stock that slips into serious decline through inattention is a management failure regardless of its commercial value.
The PAM Framework’s response is not to draw a line below which proactive management does not apply, but instead to design a tiered system that extends MP discipline as far as the data will allow, for every stock under its remit — including for stocks where quantitative methods are not currently feasible. The PAM Framework creates “Tier 1” and “Tier 2” MPs (both quantitative, with different levels of sophistication of testing using management strategy evaluation, or MSE) — the typical MPs we see in fisheries management. And then it goes one step further to extend MP principles to even the most data-limited of fisheries. Its “Tier 3 Qualitative MP” is the instrument for that extension.
Many of the most durable benefits of an MP are structural, not computational. Pre-agreed rules shift management decisions from reactive, case-by-case negotiation to a rules-based system agreed in advance. Explicit consideration of future scenarios, including adverse ones, disciplines decision-making in ways that traditional assessment advice rarely does. Defined monitoring triggers create accountability and an evidence base for future review.
A Qualitative MP formalises these benefits. It is a full MP in its composition: it requires a fishery definition, explicit management objectives, limit reference points, HCRs, performance monitoring, exceptional circumstances protocols, and scheduled review — the same core architecture as a quantitative or empirically-derived MP.
What differs is how elements are developed, selected, and implemented. Most notably, Qualitative MPs are not developed using quantitative simulation testing, a fundamental element of what typically makes an MP an MP. For these Tier 3 stocks, quantitative analyses are impossible. Stock assessment relies on the best available method given the data — which at this tier means qualitative analysis: expert judgement applied to life history knowledge from analogous species; observable indicators such as changes in catch composition, fish size, or fleet behaviour; and any other evidence the fishery or other sources can provide. And similarly, when it comes to MP development, in place of quantitative MSE modelling, structured qualitative evaluation applies: an independent expert panel (odd-numbered to allow majority decision-making) is asked the same question the quantitative simulation would perform. It considers the plausible scenarios for the stock (changes in fishing dynamics, recruitment variability, environmental shifts, alternative biological assumptions), evaluates candidate management approaches against the agreed management objectives, and recommends the approach most likely to meet those objectives. Where panel members disagree, the range of opinions and the driving factors are documented. The HCRs that result may be qualitative — a defined catch trigger, escalating levels of intervention, or thresholds based on observable changes — but they are pre-agreed, explicit, and binding in the same way as any other HCR.
The output is a complete MP. It is evaluated differently, and its rules may be expressed qualitatively rather than quantitatively, but it carries the same procedural weight and the same expectation of compliance as any other MP adopted under the PAM Framework.
Expert knowledge should not be considered a substitute where sufficient fisheries data exists — but it is data that can be used where it doesn’t. Scientists, managers, and industry participants carry substantial knowledge that never enters a formal assessment process: life history understanding from analogous species, observations of shifts in catch composition or fleet behaviour, and practical understanding of what the monitoring system can and cannot detect. Structured evaluation makes that knowledge explicit, subjects it to independent scrutiny, and converts it into documented, auditable management advice.
Qualitative MPs should be treated as temporary. The process of structured expert evaluation is good at identifying, with some precision, exactly which data gaps are preventing graduation to a higher (quantitative) tier. That specificity creates an institutional case for closing data gaps, which does not exist when a stock sits entirely outside the management framework. The PAM Framework builds in scheduled re-evaluation and expects stocks to graduate upward as understanding improves, but it also acknowledges that graduation requires a genuine commitment to monitoring and data collection.
Qualitative MPs are not the goal. An MP should always be as quantitative as the data will support. Qualitative MPs are the floor, not the default — the point is to match the rigour of the MP to the information available, and to push that rigour as far as possible.
A Qualitative MP will never deliver the confidence that a quantitatively developed MP will provide. But, for stocks that currently have no structured management framework at all, the question is not whether the MP is perfect — it is whether it is better than the alternative. Structured objectives, pre-agreed rules, independent evaluation, explicit precaution, and a defined pathway toward more rigorous management is a meaningful foundation.
Fisheries professionals have spent decades demonstrating that proactive, rules-based management outperforms reactive decision-making. Tier 3 Qualitative MPs extend that argument to the fisheries that have, until now, been left out of it.
Kerrie Robertson previously chaired the Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA) and two subsidiary committees of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO). She represented governments in multilateral negotiations spanning UN frameworks and many RFMOs. Her consultancy work through Adira Consulting focuses on translating complex legal instruments into workable governance arrangements, particularly for Pacific Island nations. She has spent her career working at the intersection of international law, fisheries science, and cross-cultural collaboration—convinced that effective ocean governance comes from dialogue, commitment to progress and ensuring that all voices are genuinely heard at the table.
Earlier this month, Ash Wilson (The Pew Charitable Trusts) and I co-convened a workshop titled ‘Operationalizing Ecosystem-Based Management of Forage Species using Management Strategy Evaluation.’ The workshop was part of the program at the Small Pelagic Fish International Symposium hosted by ICES, PICES, and FAO in La Paz, Mexico. Held on May 4, 2026, the half-day workshop brought together 25 participants working in management strategy evaluation (MSE), ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM), and the intersection between the two. Through expert presentations and breakout discussions, workshop attendees explored how MSE-tested management procedures, also known as harvest strategies, can help advance ecosystem-based management approaches for forage fisheries under increasing environmental uncertainty.
Why MSE for forage species?
Forage species (e.g., sardine, anchovy, herring) play a critical role in the marine food web, linking low and high trophic levels by providing a key prey resource for predators such as marine mammals, seabirds, and large commercially important fishes (e.g., tunas, billfishes). However, their abundance in space and time is highly dependent on changing environmental conditions. Effective management of these species therefore poses a challenge, as patterns in their recruitment and biomass are driven by multiple interacting ecosystem and environmental factors, the individual impacts of which can be difficult to tease apart and simulate. Additionally, perceived relationships between the environment and forage fish population dynamics often break down over time, leading to high uncertainty in estimating recruitment and natural mortality using traditional stock assessment methods.
MSE is an ideal tool for addressing these management challenges for forage species, as MSE frameworks can be built to capture a wide range of possible ecosystem conditions and uncertainties, allowing managers to identify management procedures that remain robust under changing environmental and ecosystem conditions.
Showcasing emerging tools and real-world applications
In six presentations delivered by experts in the field, the workshop showcased existing research initiatives, case studies, and emerging tools designed to incorporate ecosystem considerations into fisheries management through MSE.
Three case study presentations highlighted regional examples of ecosystem considerations in MSE.
Regional discussions reveal shared challenges
Following the presentations, participants broke into regional discussion groups, where they discussed region- and stock-specific considerations for operationalizing EBFM, including identifying key drivers of variability, potential ecosystem indicators, critical data needs (including for building MSE frameworks), and the remaining hurdles to bridge science and management. Example fisheries discussed included Pacific sardine in the California Current, Gulf of Mexico menhaden, Bay of Biscay anchovy, Iberian sardine, and North Sea and Central Baltic herring. Across stocks, workshop participants repeatedly identified the need for a better mechanistic understanding of links between environmental variability and fish population dynamics in order to successfully incorporate ecosystem considerations into management. Similar ecosystem drivers, including upwelling and predation mortality, were identified across systems. At the same time, possible or existing approaches for incorporating ecosystem information into management (including MSE frameworks) varied among regions and species, reflecting differences in available data, ecosystem dynamics, and institutional contexts.
Looking ahead
A summary of the workshop, including a synthesis of breakout group findings on common challenges, shared ecosystem drivers, feasible indicators for MSE frameworks, and opportunities for collaboration across regions and forage stocks, was published in the July 2026 edition of PICES Press. A summary of this workshop can be found on page 55.
Additionally, key takeaways from presentations and discussions will be incorporated into a joint paper with other Symposium convenors and attendees, to be submitted to a special issue of a peer-reviewed journal.
Overall, the workshop highlighted the growing momentum and available tools for using MSE to operationalize ecosystem-based fisheries management for forage species and other stocks. As climate change and increasing environmental variability continue to impact ecosystems and fishery dynamics, implementing ecosystem-informed management approaches including MSE will become even more important for supporting sustainable fisheries.
Photo by Willy Goldsmith | Flickr. CC BY-ND 2.0.
2026 marks the 60th anniversary of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Now with 55 contracting parties, ICCAT is divided into 4 panels responsible for managing tunas, swordfish, sharks, and other species across the entire Atlantic Ocean. Each panel has a chair who is formally elected by the Commission to lead discussions on management of their respective stocks. In celebration of ICCAT’s 60th anniversary, this article highlights reflections from all current panel chairs, focusing on major achievements and the trajectory of management strategy evaluation (MSE) and management procedures (MPs).
Dovlo – In 2023, I inherited chairmanship of Panel 1 amidst challenging negotiations on the multi-annual conservation and management programme for tropical tunas. I worked with almost all ICCAT members to conclude 5 years of intense discussions for a new measure to finally be adopted in 2024. An agreement was reached for a new total allowable catch (TAC) of 73,011 t for bigeye tuna, with a new catch limit allocation table that reserved 6,100 t for the small harvesters, while the TAC for yellowfin tuna remains at 110,000 t. This process demonstrated high-level collaboration to converge science-based management and balance individual member interests. In the same year, two important milestones in the development of tropical tunas MSEs were recorded – interim operational management objectives for Atlantic bigeye tuna, yellowfin tuna, and the eastern stock of skipjack tuna, and candidate MPs (CMPs) for Western Atlantic skipjack tuna. In 2025, the first ever tropical tunas MSE was adopted – Recommendation by ICCAT on a management procedure for Western Atlantic skipjack tuna.
Ota – I have been the Panel 2 Chair since 2017. There is no doubt that the most successful event during my tenure is the establishment of an MP for Atlantic bluefin tuna in 2022. For a long time, this species had been managed on a stock basis, namely the eastern stock and the western stock. The Commission set a TAC for the eastern stock at a level higher than the scientific recommendation of the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics (SCRS) before 2010. Even after that, the Commission spent much time deciding on the TAC for both stocks because the scientific recommendation was not clear due to data deficiency. To overcome scientific uncertainties and avoid political intervention, the Commission decided to establish an MP since it automatically calculates TAC levels, giving due consideration to scientific uncertainties. It was not easy for managers and stakeholders, particularly fishermen, to understand what was going on in the MSE that produced the MP. Managers and stakeholders tend to look at the possible immediate TAC level while scientists want to look at the performance of an MP for the longer term. Nonetheless, scientists, managers, and stakeholders worked very hard and were able to narrow down the number of candidate MPs from nine to two but could not pick one of them. Finally, on the evening before the last day of the 2022 annual meeting, the Commission agreed to one of them, which would be used to set the TAC for 3-year management cycles. That same day, the Commission also adopted an annual TAC for the first management cycle based on the adopted MP (i.e., 2023-25). The Commission also agreed to allocations among Members.
Mketsu – During my tenure as Chair of Panel 3, one of the key successes has been maintaining a stable and well-managed stock for South Atlantic albacore. The stock has consistently remained in the green quadrant of the Kobe plot, indicating that it is not overfished and that overfishing is not occurring, reflecting sustained collective management efforts by Contracting Parties and Cooperating non-Contracting Parties, Entities, and Fishing Entities (CPCs). In addition, an important recent milestone was the agreement in 2024 on initial operational management objectives for this stock, alongside a structured roadmap toward the development and adoption of an MP in 2027. This represents a significant step in transitioning from traditional management approaches toward more forward-looking, MSE-based frameworks.
Ouchelli – Over the past three years, in my capacity as Chair of Panel 4, we have worked collectively to strengthen conservation measures applicable to several species. The Commission has accordingly approved the measures proposed by Panel 4 prohibiting the retention of the whale shark, mobulid rays (Mobulidae), the basking shark, and the great white shark. Membership of Panel 4 has expanded to now include 44 Contracting Parties, and among the notable achievements is the 2024 MP adoption for North Atlantic swordfish, which established the TAC for the years 2025–2027. This follows extensive work by the scientific working group, as well as close collaboration among all Contracting Parties and stakeholders.
Dovlo – The first ever tropical tuna multi-stock MSE – which aims to evaluate robust MPs within a mixed-fishery context – was initially slated for completion and MP adoption this year. However, at the 2026 Intersessional Meeting of the Tropical Tunas Species Group (20-22 April), the group recommended updating Operating Models (OMs) to the 2025 Atlantic bigeye tuna stock assessment to reflect recent fishery trends and revised assumptions about natural mortality and uncertainty. A 2027 MP adoption has since been proposed to modify OMs and test CMPs in single-stock MSEs before progressing to multi-stock MSEs. That said, there is still work for the panel to do this year on this MSE as it will be important for Panel 1 to review and provide feedback on the initial CMP structure and results at the next meeting in November. With last year’s adoption of the MP for Western Atlantic skipjack tuna, work has also started on the stock’s exceptional circumstances protocol.
Ota – During the 2025 SCRS meeting, scientists could not agree on how to handle data from an Atlantic bluefin genetic analysis known as close-kin mark recapture (CKMR), which indicated that the western stock was much larger than previously considered. More specifically, scientists could not agree on whether the availability of such new data and the calculated size of the western stock would justify an exceptional circumstance (i.e., an unforeseen event or condition that falls outside the range of possibilities tested in the MSE). As a result, the SCRS provided two sets of TACs to the Commission. Further, some Members advocated that their fishermen were seeing a large number of fish in recent years, which corresponded to the results of the CKMR analysis. The Commission agreed to a TAC for the west area that is not necessarily in line with the MP but confirmed that the MP will be applied strictly at the 2028 annual meeting. In the meantime, work has begun on the bluefin tuna MSE health check and MP review, per the schedule agreed in the adopted MP.
Mketsu – The current focus is on advancing the technical development of the MSE for South Atlantic albacore. This includes further refinement of OMs, continued testing of CMPs, and incorporation of key sources of uncertainty identified by the SCRS. A dedicated MSE Technical Team has been established, and initial work has already been undertaken, including conditioning OMs on the 2020 stock assessment and exploring uncertainty through multiple scenarios. Upcoming work includes data preparation, refinement of CMPs, and continued interaction between the SCRS and Panel 3 to ensure that performance indicators align with agreed objectives. I look forward to reviewing the initial MSE results within Panel 3 at the 2026 Commission meeting.
Ouchelli – This year, per the MP adopted for North Atlantic swordfish, Panel 4 will assess exceptional circumstances. It should be emphasized that the adoption of this MP has paved the way for the MSE approach for blue shark (Prionace glauca), which is currently ongoing. Furthermore, stock assessments for Mediterranean and South Atlantic swordfish are being conducted this year, which may serve as a basis for future MSE-related work.
Dovlo – With the support of all Panel 1 members, I expect to see some preliminary results for the tropical tunas multi-stock MSE CMPs this year, along with a thorough roadmap for feedback and fine tuning for adoption in 2027. Also noteworthy is the exceptional circumstances protocol for Western Atlantic skipjack tuna incorporating climate change scenarios for adoption in 2026.
Ota – Based on the work plan for bluefin tuna agreed to in 2022, the Commission will start checking the stock status in 2026 and reviewing the current MP in 2027, which may end up with amendments to the MP or establishment of a new MP in 2028. For this purpose, several intersessional meetings involving scientists, managers, and stakeholders may be needed again in 2026 and 2027. This is also different from the initial expectation that once an MP is established, not so much time and energy will be required to maintain it. People are beginning to understand that an MSE and maintenance of an MP can sometimes be cumbersome rather than saving time, but there is no option to go back to the old era when Members had different interpretations on scientific advice and spent so much time agreeing to TACs. Brushing up on the MP would be the only way forward.
Mketsu – Given the significant progress made to date, there is a growing sense that this South Atlantic albacore work may advance more rapidly than initially anticipated. Subject to continued technical and policy alignment, it would not be unreasonable to envisage the Panel being in a position to consider adoption of an MP earlier than planned, potentially as early as the coming year. The agreed roadmap provides a clear pathway toward adoption of an MP, currently envisaged by 2027. In the near term, efforts will focus on finalizing the MSE framework, refining CMPs, and evaluating their performance against agreed objectives.
Over the medium term, the process will move toward narrowing down CMPs and supporting decision-making within Panel 3, with the aim of adopting an MP at the Commission level. Beyond this, attention will shift to implementation aspects, including the development of protocols for exceptional circumstances and ongoing evaluation of performance.
Overall, if momentum is maintained, this process has the potential to further strengthen the long-term stability and predictability of management for South Atlantic albacore within ICCAT.
Ouchelli – I expect to see gradual expansion of current management measures to other shark species and the integration of climate change impacts into our overall approach. There has been particular interest in climate change testing for MPs developed through MSE. Members are working diligently to strengthen data collection of sharks and other bycatch species which will help inform the Panel 4 recommendations to the Commission.
Plans are in the works for a more defined, thorough consultative process that promotes inclusive fisheries management. This may be especially relevant within the framework of establishing recovery programs for white marlin and roundscale spearfish. This approach takes into account the specific circumstances of CPCs that are Small Island Developing States, operating within a complex scientific and social context.
©FAO/Giulio Napolitano
Blog originally published on FAO’s Common Oceans Program Newsroom.
Focus on All Tunas 2028 for the adoption of long-term harvest strategies
28/04/2026
Boston – Tuna harvesting and sustainability generated widespread interest during events staged by the Common Oceans Program Tuna project at the Seafood Expo North America in March.
The Seafood Expo North America (SENA) is the continent’s largest seafood show. This year’s event from 15-17 March drew more than 20,000 industry professionals and experts who exchanged views on the current state and the future of the seafood sector.
The role of tunas, some of the most important seafood species in overall volume and value, was advanced by the GEF-funded Common Oceans Tuna project through a booth and panel discussion to promote the All Tunas 2028 initiative.
All Tunas 2028 aims to give seafood retailers, wholesalers, distributors, and others a voice to promote adoption of harvest strategies for the most commercially valuable tuna stocks by the end of 2028.
More than 60 people attended the panel discussion which highlighted the importance of management procedures (MPs), also known as harvest strategies, and their impact on the seafood supply chain as well as the vital role played by Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs).
Shana Miller, project director, International Fisheries Conservation at The Ocean Foundation, said: “SENA provided a valuable opportunity to engage with an often-underrepresented RFMO stakeholder—the seafood supply chain professionals who bring fish from vessel to consumer.”
“Harvest strategies are essential for ensuring the long-term fishery stability and abundance that underpin their businesses,” Miller said. “That’s why they support All Tunas 2028, and HarvestStrategies.org is proud to be the online home of this important initiative.”
Katy Hladki, senior officer, markets, international fisheries at The Pew Charitable Trusts, stressed the importance of SENA as an opportunity to engage with stakeholders across the supply chain.
“We were excited to see such strong interest in the All Tunas 2028 initiative,” Hladki said. “It was a great kick off to this important work to bring market voices to RFMOs and support the timely adoption of harvest strategies for all tuna stocks.”
RFMOs are critical for the management of the world’s most valuable fisheries, yet the seafood markets and in particular, consumers, rarely participate in their decisions.
Industry taking the next step to connect RFMOs with fisheries and markets
Nicole Condon, the director of Brand & Social Impact at Oddisea SuperFrozen and Vice-Chair of the board at Sea Pact, said industry players, like Sea Pact, were taking the next step in RFMO engagement to connect fisheries and the markets in which we operate.
“We often find a gap between in-market sustainability demands—including new regulatory requirements—and the adoption and implementation of critical steps, such as harvest strategies, at the RFMO level,” Condon said.
“We must do more to not only relay the urgency of this work for our own operations further down the supply chain, but also do more to build trust as reliable partners in this process. That is why we support initiatives like All Tunas 2028.”
Across the five tuna RFMOs, MPs have been adopted for a subset of the world’s commercially important tuna stocks, covering more than half global tuna production. However, progress remains uneven.
Of the 23 RFMO‑managed commercially important tuna stocks, only ten currently have an agreed management procedures in place. Eight others are at advanced stages of MP development, while for four stocks, development has yet to be initiated.
That means a substantial share of global tuna production continues to be managed through stock‑assessment‑based decision‑making, alongside ongoing efforts to broaden the application of management procedures
FAO has developed an e-learning series, Management Procedures for sustainable tuna fisheries in collaboration with The Ocean Foundation, the ISSF and The Pew Charitable Trusts. The series introduces core concepts behind management procedures, or harvest strategies, and step-by-step training that aims to strengthen the capacity of fisheries professionals to actively engage in their development and implementation.
Harvest strategies provide for pre-agreed decision-making frameworks that determine allowable fishing levels under different stock conditions. They aim to keep fisheries within sustainable limits while reducing the risk of stock decline.
To learn more:
https://elearning.fao.org/course/mp-series-en