SEAFDEC Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center
SEAFDEC, led by the Secretary-General Dr. Kom Silapajarn, participated in the 27th Meeting of the ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Fisheries (ASWGFi) held on 27-28 June 2019 in Da Nang, Viet Nam. The Meeting was attended by representatives from the ASEAN Member States, officials of the ASEAN Secretariat, and observers from the Australian Government, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the European Union (EU), and SEAFDEC.
During the Meeting, SEAFDEC reported the progress made in the implementation of several policy frameworks previously adopted by the ASEAN, e.g. the Joint ASEAN-SEAFDEC Declaration on Regional Cooperation for Combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Enhancing the Competitiveness of ASEAN Fish and Fishery Products; the Regional Fishing Vessels Record (RFVR); the ASEAN Catch Documentation Scheme; the Regional Cooperation to Support the Implementation of the Port State Measures in ASEAN Region; and the Regional Plan of Action on Sustainable Utilization of Neritic Tunas in Southeast Asian. The ASWGFi also noted the endorsement by the Senior Officials Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (SOM-AMAF) of the ASEAN Common Position on the proposed listing of commercially-exploited aquatic species in the CITES Appendices, which shall be used as basis for AMSs in reflecting their respective position during the forthcoming 18th Session of CITES-CoP to be held in August 2019 in Switzerland. Furthermore, the ASWGFi also noted the plan and progress made by SEAFDEC in reviewing the “Resolution and Plan of Action on Sustainable Fisheries for Food Security for the ASEAN Region Towards 2020” which was previously adopted by the Senior Officials and Ministers responsible for fisheries of the ASEAN-SEAFDEC Member Countries in 2011.
On the ASEAN-SEAFDEC collaborative projects, the ASWGFi took note of the 25 on-going projects of 2018-2019, noting the completion of two projects on Enhancing Coastal Community Resilience for Sustainable Livelihood and Coastal Resources Management; and Cold Chain Management for Seafood in 2018. With regards to the new initiatives starting 2019, the ASWGFi noted two pipeline projects on Development of Stock Assessment Method and Strengthening of Resources Management Measures on Tropical Anguillid Eels in ASEAN Region; and Second Phase of Enhancing Coastal Community Resilience for Sustainable Livelihood and Coastal Resource Management. Furthermore, considering that the implementation of the first project on “Anguillid Eels” could be expected in 2019, Indonesia also offered to be the ASEAN Lead Country for this project.