Abstract
The economic downturn in the 1990s and early 2000s associated with the break-up of the Soviet Union had a negative impact on Georgian fisheries. Both marine and freshwater fisheries and aquaculture suffered considerable decline. The Georgian fishing fleet deteriorated. The role of state institutions in fisheries management weakened and funding of scientific research diminished. Economic and institutional problems had a negative effect on the state of aquatic bio-resources. The excessive and relentless use of living resources, use of illegal fishing gear and degradation of coastal ecosystems led to a considerable reduction in fish stocks, while the number of vulnerable and endangered species increased. Starting from the new millennium the attitude has changed. In 2004-2005 the 15-year plan for the development of the ecosystem approach to fisheries in Georgia was initiated with support from the FAO. A Georgian law on fisheries and aquaculture has been introduced. Discussions on responsible fisheries and an aquaculture code have also started, but are still pending. On the other hand, the fisheries department of the Ministry of Agriculture was abolished and the single fisheries research institute met a similar fate. Fisheries regulation came under the authority of the ministry of environment. There is still a lot to be done in order to establish an ecosystem approach to fisheries in Georgia. First of all, the legislative base must be addressed, including the Georgian law on fisheries, which would consider such issues as long-term sustainable development of fisheries, a responsible code of conduct for fishermen, monitoring and management structures at the national level, allocation of resources and application of scientific approaches in development of fisheries, aquaculture and mariculture.
Highlights
Since the beginning of the new millennium the fisheries sector of Georgia has become a market-oriented, dynamically developing sector of the food industry
In the late 1980s it became evident that fish resources would not be able to keep pace with rapid and, in most cases, uncontrolled exploitation, immediately requiring the introduction of new methods for fisheries management or an ecosystem approach aimed at conserving biological resources and the state of the environment
The destruction of the economic links after the break-up of the Soviet Union had an impact on the Georgian economy as a whole and on the fisheries sector in particular
Summary
Since the beginning of the new millennium the fisheries sector of Georgia has become a market-oriented, dynamically developing sector of the food industry. In response to increasing demand for fisheries products coastal countries are trying to benefit from their own new opportunities by investing in a contemporary fishing fleet and processing factories. In the late 1980s it became evident that fish resources would not be able to keep pace with rapid and, in most cases, uncontrolled exploitation, immediately requiring the introduction of new methods for fisheries management or an ecosystem approach aimed at conserving biological resources and the state of the environment. In 2004-2005 a 15-year management plan for the development of the Georgian fishery economy was initiated with support from the FAO, with the aim of creating the basis for an ecosystem approach towards fishery (Van Anrooy et al 2006). Discussion began on a responsible fishery and aquaculture code and an attempt to establish it was launched
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