The benefits from international market access and trade in fish and fishery products should not be confined to organized producers, but should be translated into better human development of small-scale fish producers as well, and lead to an improvement in the socioeconomic well-being of fishing communities, the Sub-Committee on Fisheries (COFI) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was told.
In an intervention on Agenda Item 5, “Value Chain Analysis and International Trade”, the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) pointed out to the 13th Session of COFI being held in Hyderabad, India, 20-24 February 2012, that fisheries and aquaculture co-operatives should be strengthened so that small-scale fishers and fish farmers receive a fair share of the export price for their products.
Co-operatives can also enhance auctioning arrangements, ensure timely and adequate credit supply and provide better market information for informed decisions for the small-scale fisheries sector.
The ICSF intervention called on FAO, in this International Year of Co-operatives, to undertake case studies in Asia, Africa and Latin America on successful small-scale fishers’ and fish farmers’ co-operatives.
In a separate intervention on Agenda Item 12, “COFI Sub-Committee on Fish and Fish Trade as International Commodity Body for the Common Fund for Commodities”, ICSF focused on “decent work”, which remains a dream for many fishworkers around the world.
Decent work means productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. It encompasses respect for basic rights like freedom of association, access to employment, safe and healthy working conditions, and social security, the intervention noted.
As the International Commodity Body for fish and fishery products, FAO was urged to consult with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and propose case studies on international fish trade and decent work of fishworkers.
The full texts of the ICSF interventions can be found at http://www.icsf.net/SU/stmt/I
ICSF is an international NGO that works towards the establishment of equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector.
For more, please visit www.icsf.net
2012 ICSF