The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has published a technical note on how South-South trade in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors has experienced large growth over the past decade, reaching double or even triple digits.
Noting that marine fisheries and aquaculture represent a key source of income, food security, nutrition, and employment in many developing countries, particularly for Least Developing countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS), the note records that in 2022, South-South trade across various fisheries sectors—marine fisheries, aquaculture, fish processing, and fishing vessels—amounted to $39 bn. Developing countries’ exports of fisheries and aquaculture processed products now account for 53 per cent of the global share. These countries have also made significant strides in value addition within their industries, says the note.
However, these activities are currently threatened by overfishing, harmful subsidies, climate change and pollution. Within the current international trade context, developing countries have limited incentives to move up global value chains (GVCs) for ocean-based products due to current tariffs and moderate tariff escalation3 , and a high prevalence and incidence of non-tariff measures.
The Global System of Trade Preferences among developing countries (GSTP) provides an agile and flexible platform of South-South trade cooperation that allows its participants to address tariffs, para-tariffs, and non-tariff measures, and engage in direct trade measures and sectoral agreements The Agreement can be leveraged to reduce or phase out tariffs (including any remaining tariff peaks4 ) and non-tariff measures, harmonizing export and import requirements, establishing supply contracts, sharing technology and knowledge among participants, and establishing sectoral agreements.
These actions could also serve to improve food security by increasing availability and affordability of protein- and micronutrientsrich food, foster resilience through geographical trade diversification, expand sustainable fisheries, aquaculture and other sustainable ocean-based trade with high complementarity and valueaddition potential among participants, the note adds.
The technical note was produced jointly by the Trade, Environment and Development Branch (TEDB) and the Trading Systems, Services and Creative Economy Branch (TSCE) in the Division on International Trade and Commodities (DITC) of UNCTAD under the technical cooperation project “Support to the Global System of Trade Preferences among Developing Countries (X00M).”
This note is the first issue of a series tailored to participants of the Global System of Trade Preferences among developing countries (GSTP), for which UNCTAD is the Secretariat. The GSTP is an agreement currently encompassing 42 participant countries, which aims at increasing South-South trade through preferential arrangements relating to tariffs, para-tariffs, non-tariff measures, and direct trade measures, as well as sectoral agreements. The last Round of GSTP negotiations took place in 2010 and ended in the adoption of the São Paulo Round Protocol (SPR).