The Caribbean Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) adopted a regional policy on fisheries to improve sustainable use and management of the region’s aquaculture and fisheries resources, at its meeting in Paramaribo, Suriname on October 10.
The Council, which comprises Ministers responsible for Agriculture from across the Caribbean Community, confirmed the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy (CCCFP) which is aimed at fostering greater harmonisation and the sustainable management and development of the region’s fisheries and aquaculture resources. The Policy also places emphasis on the efficient use of shared resources and improvement to food security and poverty reduction in the region.
The Policy as with other CARICOM policies, is binding on all member countries, the Caribbean Court of Justice has advised. In giving its stamp of approval, COTED agreed that the Policy should be applied by Member States as far as possible.
The CCCFP seeks to operationalise Article 60 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas which created the Caribbean Community and Single Market. The provision allows for the collaboration of competent regional and international agencies in the promotion, development and conservation of regional fisheries resources on a sustainable basis. In addition, the implementation of a common policy on fisheries will contribute to the enhanced treatment of the Caribbean Sea as a special area in the context of sustainable development. The Policy recognises the importance of fisheries to social and economic development, food and nutrition security and the welfare of the peoples of the Caribbean.
The CCCFP is aimed at securing the maximum benefits of the resources for the peoples of the Caribbean. The Policy is expected to transform the region’s fisheries sector into a market-oriented, internationally competitive and environmentally sustainable one, based on the highest international standards of quality assurance and sanitary and phyto-sanitary systems
The recommendation for the acceptance of the policy came out of the 5th Special Meeting of the CRFM’s Ministerial Council, which was held on Thursday, 9 October 2014, also in Paramaribo. Both meetings coincided with the Caribbean Week of Agriculture at which CRFM’s Executive Director, Milton Haughton, presented a paper on First CARICOM Strategic Plan (2015 – 2019).
The Secretariat as well as other CARICOM Institutions and member states countries will for the first time be following a single plan.
CRFM members are Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts Nevis, St. Lucia, St Vincent and Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
