Coastal fisheries provide a rich source of income and food for the vast majority countries of the Commonwealth. It plays a vital role in many Commonwealth countries, in supporting tourism, food security, recreation, livelihoods and in providing diverse trading opportunities to strengthen national economies. However, due to a variety of reasons, most fisheries has been over-exploited in a level where most fisheries is slowly or difficult to recover.

Therefore a way forward to sustaining these biodiversity and its services, Kiribati is delighted to champion the Action Group on the sustainable coastal fisheries under the Commonwealth Blue Charter. We support the Blue Charter as a key outcome of the 2018 CHOGM and as a means to cooperatively contribute to the ecologically sustainable management of our coastal marine resources. Interested member countries are warmly welcomed to join us.

Maldives stepped forward to co-champion the Action Group on sustainable coastal fisheries at a virtual seminar hosted by the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2020.

The Action Group is championed by Kiribati and Maldives and was established to support on-going fisheries programs, efforts and approaches to ensure sustainable coastal fisheries is achieved so as benefits from coastal fisheries is continued to be experienced for the present and future generation. The actions will also support a resilient coastal fisheries in the face of climate change and mostly importantly, alignment of actions towards international, regional and national obligations.

 

40 million
people are directly employed by the fishing sector globally, over 97% of which are in developing countries.

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Commonwealth Blue Charter

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