The Senior Policy Officer from the SEAFDEC Secretariat, Ms. Pattaratjit Kaewnuratchadasorn, attended the regional workshop “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and Support for its Implementation” which took place in Chennai, India on 15–16 May 2025. The Workshop was organized by the Bay of Bengal Program Inter-Governmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO) in collaboration with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and Rise Up. The Workshop brought together a diverse group of stakeholders across South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka) and Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand), including government officials from fisheries, commerce, and trade departments, along with representatives from international and regional organizations that includes the World Trade Organization (WTO), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), IISD, BOBP-IGO, and SEAFDEC, among others.
The main objectives of the Workshop were to enhance regional understanding of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and foster dialogue on national implementation strategies and regional cooperation. Throughout the two-day Workshop, the participants shared views of the Agreement in their respective countries and explored practical strategies for its effective implementation, and the discussions focused on the challenges and opportunities associated with implementing the Agreement at both national and regional levels. The participants were informed on the available tools and resources to support WTO Members, including WTO Fisheries Funding Mechanism (Fish Fund), which is designed to provide technical assistance and capacity-building for implementation, and a self-assessment tool developed by IISD to help countries determine domestic reforms required to comply with the Agreement, and areas that may be required for the assistance. During the Workshop, SEAFDEC underscored its active role in building the capacity of its Member Countries and enhancing regional cooperation aimed at achieving sustainable fisheries.
The WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies was adopted at the 12th Ministerial Conference in June 2022 to curb harmful fisheries subsidies that contribute to overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, while also providing special and differential treatment for developing and least-developed countries. For the Agreement to enter into force, formal acceptances from two-thirds of WTO members are required. As of 20 May 2025, 99 WTO members have deposited the instrument of acceptance of the Agreement.