A group of civil society organizations (CSOs) has called on the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to develop sustainable development goals (SDGs) for fisheries in a balanced way, integrating all dimensions of sustainable development.
The plea was contained in a Statement on Agenda Item 9: Ocean Governance and the Outcomes of Rio+20 at the 13th Session of FAO’s Committee on Fisheries (COFI) on 11 July 2012 in Rome, made by the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fishworkers (WFF), the World Forum of Fisher People (WFFP), the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) and the International Planning Committee for Food Sovereignty (IPC).
The Statement noted that “The Future We Want”, the outcome document of Rio+20, reaffirms, among other things, respect for all human rights, including the right to development and the right to an adequate standard of living, including the right to food, gender equality, and the empowerment of women. It reaffirms the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities as set out in Principle 7 of the Rio Declaration. It also reaffirms decent work and social protection for all.
The outcome document recognizes the important contributions of small-scale fisherfolk to sustainable development through production activities that are environmentally sound, and enhance food security and the livelihoods of the poor. It seeks to promote, enhance and support sustainable fisheries and sustainable aquaculture that improve local food security and nutrition, and provide for the livelihoods of millions of people. It resolves to improve access to information, technical knowledge and know-how of fisherfolk.
Most important from our perspective, the Statement noted, the outcome document of Rio +20 commits to ensure access to fisheries by subsistence, small-scale and artisanal fisherfolk and women fishworkers, as well as indigenous peoples and their communities.
The Statement urged COFI to advise the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department to focus on the issues of food and livelihood security in the framework of oceans governance, where fisheries should be treated as a priority area for the achievement of sustainable development.
FAO should also evaluate and make recommendations on the impact of climate change and ocean acidification on fishery resources and the livelihoods of fisher peoples.
The Statement also expressed concern at new global initiatives for integrated and improved ocean governance reforms that support rights-based fisheries management.
We believe that such a rights-based approach to fisheries management will lead to privatization of fisheries resources and the ocean space; benefiting only certain types of powerful, environmentally questionable and inequitable types of industrial extraction at the expense of small-scale fisheries and fishing communities. This is not consistent with a human-rights approach to sustainable development in all its dimensions, the Statement concluded.
The full text of the Statement can be accessed at http://www.icsf.net/en/statements.html?radio=O
2012 ICSF