Draft text for an agreement on ending harmful fisheries subsidies was presented to ministers meeting from November 30 to December 3 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Part of the text of the document remains in square brackets to indicate that it requires the attention of ministers at the 12th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization. Santiago Wills, Colombian Ambassador to the WTO and Chair of the Fisheries Subsidies Talks, said the current draft “reflects an honest attempt to strike a balance in members’ positions and I think it is. the most likely way to reach consensus, without undermining our goal of sustainable development and successfully concluding more than 20 years of negotiations.

“To date, the different positions and interests of the members have been carefully considered and debated. In addition, the threat that harmful fishing subsidies pose to our oceans grows with each passing year, jeopardizing people’s livelihoods and food security as well, ”said Wills. “However, we have reason to be optimistic. An agreement on fisheries subsidies, an agreement that will help both the planet and the people, is within reach. It is also an opportunity to strengthen confidence in multilateralism and the opportunity for WTO members to succeed in negotiating new rules for the 21st century. It will also be a big step for the sustainability of the global commons. We have this opportunity next week at MC12 – take it and deliver.

Talks have now stretched a year after the deadline set for conclusion under target 14.6 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Wills said he is confident a deal will be made because the text presented is clearer than many anticipated.

But one of the bracketed provisions in the draft text prohibits any WTO member from granting subsidies to fishing vessels that do not fly their national flag. The fleets of several major fishing countries, including China, fly the flags of developing countries, with many Chinese vessels flying the Ghanaian flag, for example. Exemptions for low-income developing countries targeting overfished stocks are also still debated. And even the exact definition of what constitutes a low-income developing country has yet to be decided.

Photo courtesy of the World Trade Organization