Norway has undertaken a self-assessment of flag State performance, using the Food and Agriculture Organization’s [FAO] Voluntary Guidelines for Flag State Performance [VGFSP] as a basis.
The VGFSP provide guidance to strengthen and monitor compliance by flag States with their international duties and obligations regarding the flagging and control of fishing vessels. Paragraphs 6-43 of the VGFSP outline the Performance Assessment Criteria – ranging from fisheries management, registration and records of vessels, fishing authorisations, monitoring, control and surveillance [MCS] and cooperation between flag States and coastal States – against which countries are encouraged to rate the fulfilment of their obligations.
Through this assessment, Norway has found that in general, it has incorporated the relevant binding measures into its domestic legislation and management system. However, it has identified some gaps in its regulations concerning vessels engaged in transshipment, refuelling and resupplying at sea.
The report of Norway’s self-assessment can be found here. Norway and FAO encourage other flag States to undertake and share their self-assessments.
The guidelines will be presented to the FAO Committee on Fisheries [COFI] for endorsement at its next session, scheduled to take place in June 2014. The flag State of a vessel is the State under whose laws the vessel is registered or licensed. The guidelines recommend approaches to encourage and help flag States comply with their international duties and obligations regarding the flagging and control of fishing vessels, as well as possible actions in response to non-compliance.
FAO indicates that it will monitor and report on implementation of the guidelines to COFI, as well as provide in-country technical assistance to countries requiring support, such as capacity-building measures, the strengthening of institutional organization and infrastructure, and the development or improvement of monitoring, control and surveillance [MCS] of fishing vessels. [FAO Fisheries Website]
At its 31 session in 2014 the FAO Committee on Fisheries adopted the Voluntary Guidelines on Flag State Performance [VGFSP] as a complementary tool in the fight against IUU fishing.
The VGFSP are not legally binding, but they are an important indication of what flag States may need to do in order to comply with their obligations under the UN Law of the Sea Convention, the 1995 UN Fish Stock Agreement, the 2003 FAO Compliance Agreement and the 2009 FAO Port State Measures Agreement.
The VGFSP encourages States to conduct self-assessments of their performance as responsible flag States and provide an extensive set of criteria against which flag States may assess their performance. Norway's self-assessment has recently been finalized.
The self-assessment shows that Norway has taken multiple actions in order to fulfil its flag State responsibilities, and that in general it has incorporated the relevant binding measures into its domestic legislation and management system.
These include relevant provisions of global binding instruments and measures adopted by regional fisheries management organizations [RFMOs] to which Norway is a member.
However, there are lack of clarity and deficiencies in regulations concerning vessels engaged in transshipment, and there are no fisheries specific regulations concerning vessels involved in other fishing related activities such as refueling and resupplying at sea.
There are also a few other issues, relatively minor, that should be addressed by Norwegian authorities.
The FAO Voluntary Guidelines for Flag State Performance spell out a range of actions that countries can take to ensure that vessels registered under their flags do not conduct IUU fishing, including monitoring, control and surveillance [MCS] activities, such as vessel monitoring systems [VMS] and observers. They promote information exchange and cooperation among countries so that flag states are in a position to refuse to register vessels that are "flag-hopping" by attempting to register with another flag state or to refuse vessels that have been reported for IUU fishing. The Guidelines also include recommendations on how countries can encourage compliance and take action against non-compliance by vessels, as well as on how to enhance international cooperation to assist developing countries to fulfil their flag state responsibilities. Although the guidelines are voluntary, their endorsement by the Twenty-first session of the FAO Committee on Fisheries [COFI], is a public signal by countries of their intent to adhere to a shared set of standards for flag state performance in the fight against IUU fishing activities.
Source:
//www.fao.org/fishery/topic/16159/en
Information
Author[s]FAO
References
- Voluntary Guidelines on Flag State Performance
What does vgfsp stand for?
中文 The Voluntary Guidelines for Flag State Performance [VGFSP] provide guidance to strengthen and monitor compliance by flag States with their international duties and obligations regarding the flagging and control of fishing vessels.
What are the vgfsp guidelines?
The Guidelines also include recommendations on how countries can encourage compliance and take action against non-compliance by vessels, as well as on how to enhance international cooperation to assist developing countries to fulfil their flag state responsibilities. The VGFSP, adopted at the 31st session of COFI in 2014, are available here.
What does vgfsp mean for IUU fishing?
The VGFSP spell out a range of actions that countries can take to ensure that vessels registered under their flags do not conduct IUU fishing, including monitoring, control and surveillance [MCS] activities, such as vessel monitoring systems [VMS] and observers.
How does FAO support the implementation of the SSF guidelines?
Supporting the implementation of the SSF Guidelines, FAO is strengthening fishers’ organizations and promoting women’s empowerment [through better access to markets, reduced food losses] and improved occupational health [through the provision of improved fish processing technologies].