Regional Fisheries Management Organizations Research Articles

The complete mitochondrial genome of Chilean Jack Mackerel, Trachurus murphyi Nichols, 1920 (Teleostei, Carangidae)

The Chilean jack mackerel (Trachurus murphyi, Nichols, 1920) is a pelagic fish of high fishery interest, with a global capture of 828,358 mt in 2021. We report the complete mitochondrial genome of T. murphyi (Teleostei, Carangidae), collected in Bahia de Zapallar, Chile (32°33’02.59’’ S, 71°27’55.38’’ W). The size of the mitogenome is 16,561 bp (H-strand composition: 25.9% A, 16.7% C, 29.8% G, and 27.5% T). The mitogenome has the classic vertebrate gene content of 13 protein-coding, two rRNA, and 22 tRNA genes, as found in Carangidae and other Teleostei families. Phylogenetic analysis using mitochondrial genomes of 22 related species revealed that T. murphyi formed a well-supported monophyletic group with the other Trachurus species, being T. simmetricus its closest relative. Sequencing the mitochondrial genome from T. murphyi is the first step in developing traceability tools based on DNA analysis to enforce fishing quotas and trace the processed food and foodstuff containing Chilean jack mackerel following the objective of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organization (SPRFMO).

Optimising the review of electronic monitoring information for management of commercial fisheries

Electronic monitoring (EM) systems incorporating cameras and other devices can collect a broad range of data to support fisheries management. We reviewed the data collection capabilities of EM and considered approaches to increasing efficiency, including cost effectiveness, of EM review. EM can provide information on catch, effort, catch handling, bycatch mitigation, fishing gear and operational data, which are relevant for fisheries management including by Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs). Methods to increase efficiency and decrease costs of EM review apply from the programme design phase, through data collection and review. At review, costs may be reduced by sampling imagery optimally to meet monitoring objectives. Considering RFMOs as users of EM-collected information, we applied EMoptim, an open-source simulation model developed in R that estimates the amount of EM review necessary to meet one or more user-specified monitoring objectives. EMoptim uses stratification to increase review efficiency and incorporates a function to explore review costs against the monitoring objectives set. We evaluated the amount of EM review needed to estimate catch with specified precision, using fishery data available from the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission. Model outputs show that EM review requirements increase as catch frequency decreases, dispersion of catch events increases, and when more precise catch estimates are required. Geographical stratification reduced the amount of review required for more commonly caught species and when catch events were focused in a limited area. Optimising review rates across multiple monitoring objectives was most effective for more commonly caught species. We highlight opportunities for future use and development of this prototype modelling package.

Synthesising a network of evidence on a seabird bycatch mitigation measure

AbstractRobust estimates of the relative efficacies of alternative management interventions are essential for developing evidence‐informed fisheries bycatch policy. Bycatch is a major threat to the conservation of albatrosses and other pelagic seabirds. Branchline weighting is one approach prescribed by regional fisheries management organisations and the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels to reduce seabird bycatch in pelagic longline fisheries. We used a Bayesian multilevel network meta‐regression modelling approach to conduct the first synthesis of available evidence to assess the relative efficacies at mitigating seabird bycatch of alternative pelagic longline weighting designs. Unlike conventional pairwise meta‐analysis, network meta‐analysis enables the simultaneous comparison of multiple interventions within a coherent modelling framework. There was a > 97% probability that all weighting designs significantly reduced seabird bycatch compared to a reference design with no weight within 5 m of the hook. Nonetheless, some weighting designs were significantly more effective at reducing seabird bycatch than others—for instance, the 2 designs with weights >60 g and >1 m from the hook performed the best with >93% probability that those 2 designs performed significantly better than 2 more commonly used designs with less weight but attached closer to the hook. These two best performing designs reduced seabird bycatch by ca 89% relative to the reference design. These relative efficacies and rankings, when combined with other performance criteria such as costs to commercial viability and crew safety, support robust evaluations of alternative bycatch management strategies.

International Legal Regulation of Biodiversity Conservation in Northern Latitudes (Part 2)

International scientific and technical cooperation is critically important for making effective decisions and measures to manage Arctic biodiversity. The 2017 Agreement on Strengthening International Arctic Scientific Cooperation creates a solid legal basis for intensifying current and designing new scientific research in order to obtain the best scientific data as a basis for conservation and resource management. The basis of the international legal regime for the conservation and management of biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction in the Arctic is the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. International legal acts on fisheries regulation have been adopted for all four areas of the high seas in the Arctic. The study of the Agreement on the Prevention of Unregulated Fishing on the High Seas in the central part of the 2018 SLA revealed significant shortcomings: when determining the spatial scope of application, an ecosystem approach is not used; a precautionary approach to fishing is not taken into account; the basis for the creation of a regional fisheries management organization is not created; the issue of fishing by third States remains open. The Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction 2023 develops a number of institutions, including IOE and EIA. An analysis of its provisions indicates the inexpediency of Russia’s participation in it, taking into account the existence of the 2017 Agreement and a significant system of organizations involved in the implementation of joint marine research projects. The 2023 Agreement is not capable of having a significant positive effect on international cooperation in the conservation of Arctic biodiversity, but on the contrary will create additional obstacles to scientific research and impose financial burdens.See the beginning: Lex russica. 2024;77(8):112-129. (In Russ.). DOI: 10.17803/1729-5920.2024.213.8.112-129.

The use of corrective action frameworks in international fisheries management

Compliance frameworks are important to promoting sustainable management of shared fisheries resources through the robust and transparent assessment of the implementation of conservation measures by States that are party to international agreements. This paper provides a review of existing compliance frameworks, with a special focus on corrective actions to respond to non-compliance in regional fisheries management organisations or arrangements, as well as a selection of multilateral environmental organisations. The analysis of the surveyed schemes of corrective actions identifies common themes and practices, which can provide a foundation on which to support the development of, or refinement of existing, schemes of corrective actions by other international organisations or arrangements.

Improving impact assessments to reduce impacts of deep-sea fisheries on vulnerable marine ecosystems

Robust impact assessments (IAs) for deep-sea fisheries are essential for safeguarding deep-sea ecosystems against the impacts of bottom fishing. In the high seas, United Nations Resolution commitments require States (independently or through Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs)) to conduct IAs to evaluate if fishing is putting vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) at risk. To enhance the efficacy of future IAs, this study evaluated nine IAs against the criteria in the FAO International Guidelines for the Management of Deep-Sea Fisheries in the High Seas. We find that in all IAs, the information required by the FAO Guidelines is either completely lacking or only partially addressed. The main shortcoming of the IAs was inadequate description of the ecosystems potentially affected by fishing. Additional shortcomings include incomplete description of the proposed fishing activities, lack of baseline data and risk assessments, and limited consideration of the indirect impacts of fishing. This study identifies several ways to strengthen the IA process; i) making IAs publicly available; ii) improved collection of baseline data and VME identification; iii) assessment of impacts on broader range of species associated with VMEs or potentially impacted by deep-sea fishing; iv) enhanced cooperation between RFMOs and more streamlined IA processes; v) comprehensive assessment of different types of impacts from fishing and climate change, and vii) improved consideration of uncertainty. Fully compliant IAs are a minimum requirement for the effective function of RFMOs, since they are the primary tool for preventing significant adverse impacts upon vulnerable marine ecosystems and the wider deep-sea environment.

Recent Developments in the European Union’s Involvement in Mediterranean Fisheries Management

Abstract This article examines the attention that the European Union (EU) currently pays to fisheries management in the Mediterranean Sea. The Union’s action in this marine area is complex. On the one hand, the EU is present through its Common Fisheries Policy, as the coast of eight Member States border the Mediterranean Sea. On the other hand, the EU cooperates with the other Mediterranean countries through its European Neighbourhood Policy as well as with two regional fisheries management organisations with a mandate over Mediterranean living marine resources, namely, the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean, and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.

Provisions for nullification of conservation and management measures in RFMO objection procedures

In order to successfully exercise their mandate to adopt binding conservation and management measures (CMMs) for straddling and highly migratory fish stocks, regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) and arrangements (RFMAs) need effective decision-making procedures. The constitutive instruments of a considerable number of such bodies contain objection procedures which allow individual members to unilaterally opt-out of an adopted CMM. Most scholars and RFMO performance review panels consider that unconstrained unilateral objection procedures undermine the decision-making procedures of both RFMOs and RFMAs. This article examines the phenomenon of CMM nullification provisions, which are present in five RFMOs. Such provisions deprive adopted CMMs of their binding force for all members if a certain number of members of the RFMO object to the CMM. This article argues that there is a case for a phase-out of CMM nullification provisions together with the unilateral objection procedures to which they are closely tied. Compared to unilateral objections more generally, CMM nullification provisions raise additional legitimacy questions given that they result in the nullification of CMMs that have been democratically adopted in conformity with the legitimate decision-making procedures of the respective RFMO. This article first provides a brief overview of the rationale for objection procedures by placing the concept of objections in the broader context of RFMO decision-making. Thereafter, this article briefly examines the requirements and legal effects of individual objections of RFMO members to CMMs. The final substantive section analyzes and compares existing CMM nullification provisions, focusing on the requirements for their activation, the nature of their legal effects and the legitimacy of such procedures considering the broader decision-making procedures of individual RFMOs.

Innovation in the quest for compatibility: Interplay of jurisdiction and allocation in the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation

This paper explores how the legal obligation that management measures for straddling stocks in the high seas and for areas under national jurisdiction must be ‘compatible’ is interpreted within the forum of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations, by considering the example of the ongoing conflict over allocation of jack mackerel (Trachurus murphyi) managed by the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO). To do so, the paper presents the innovative framework through which to realise compatibility set forth by the treaty instituting SPRFMO, the Convention on the Conservation and Management of High Seas Fishery Resources in the South Pacific Ocean, together with the practice implementing these provisions as seen in the annual SPRFMO jack mackerel management measure. This measure has evolved as coastal States Chile and Ecuador have consented over time to apply the measure in the areas under their national jurisdiction, and as it has been used to urge coastal State Peru to ensure measures under its area of jurisdiction are compatible with those in the SPRFMO measure. Methodologically, the paper draws from a mix of doctrinal analysis of international treaties alongside document analysis of SPRFMO Commission meeting reports, management measures, and reports of the SPRFMO Review Panel, enriched through interviews with persons with experience of the workings of SPRFMO. Ultimately, the paper grapples with the challenges in interpreting and applying the legal obligation of compatibility within the political context of allocation decisions by a Regional Fisheries Management Organisation such as SPRFMO.

Integration of spatial justice into navigating the combat on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in ocean and coastal areas

As a geographical dimension of justice, spatial justice is characterized by the interplay of social justice and heterogeneous spaces, including the ocean. Despite the generous contribution of ocean to humankind, concerns over aquatic spatial justice are disproportionately lacking. Among the core disruptors of ocean justice, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing imposes a major threat to global fisheries governance. The synthesis of spatial analysis and justice perspective can generate new insights to help understand and potentially address IUU fishing. To examine the spatial (in)justices concerning IUU fishing, we first propose a novel tripartite framework that envisions space as a form of opportunity, society and rights to externalize its socio-environmental implications. Then we integrate productive, distributive and consumptive justices to examine the spatial variations of IUU stakeholders along the fish value chain, and use stakeholder analysis to investigate spatial powers and conflicts regarding both a micro scale of fish communities, and a macro scale of states (coastal state, flag state, port state and market state) and supernational players (regional fisheries management organizations and marine protected areas). It is discovered that certain regions provide greater spatial benefits that stimulate IUU behaviors; IUU misconducts cause spatial differentiation and spatial deprivation that disrupt social orders in fish communities; space can empower stakeholders’ inclusive and proper engagement into the place-based management process against IUU fishing. Since the spatialized vision has been increasingly highlighted in marine fisheries management, it is suggested to intervene in the world ocean by leveraging spatial knowledge, managing spatial conflicts and facilitating spatial action, in order to promote spatial justice and better combat IUU fishing globally.

Policy pathways to reduce disproportionate burdens in tuna fisheries

AbstractThe United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement requires states to recognise the special requirements of developing countries and to ensure that conservation and management measures do not place a disproportionate burden on developing countries. The aim of this article is to assess what policy arrangements are required to reduce the identified disproportionate burden. We developed a policy pathway that would allow members of tuna regional fisheries management organisations (tRFMOs) to strengthen their efforts to meet their duty to share conservation burdens more equitably. This pathway consists of policy options that were developed by using policy analysis, which is an innovative approach that provides actionable outcomes that can be used by tRFMO member states. Despite the global attention to reducing disproportionate conservation burdens, developing states are still suffering. The results of this article provide novel and timely policy options that have the potential to reduce the conservation burden carried by developing states.

The challenge of assessing the effects of drifting fish aggregating devices on the behaviour and biology of tropical tuna

AbstractFishers have intensively used drifting fish aggregating devices (DFADs) over the last three decades to facilitate their catch of tropical tunas. DFADs increase purse‐seine efficiency, potentially increasing tuna fishing mortality. They could also have impacts on tuna natural mortality and reproductive potential, and assessing the consequences of their presence at sea on tuna populations is a challenge. The use of DFADs results in a major increase in the number of floating objects, which are spatially heterogeneous at sea. To date, no converging scientific results exist regarding the effects of DFADs on the large‐scale movements and behaviour of tuna, mainly due to the difficulty of disentangling the respective roles of DFADs and environmental factors. Some biological indices show that tuna condition is lower when associated to a floating object than in a free‐swimming school. However, it is not clear whether this is the cause or the consequence of the association nor if it has long‐term effects on individuals' fitness. Further scientific progress requires (i) the collection of time series of indicators to monitor habitat change, individual behaviour, individual fitness, and population dynamics and (ii) experimental studies to identify the underlying behavioural and biological processes involved in associative behaviour. The extent of the modification of the surface habitat by the massive deployment of DFADs and the current uncertainty of the possible long‐term consequences on the individual fitness and dynamics of tuna populations argue for the need for increased awareness of this issue by Regional Fisheries Management Organisations regulating tuna fishing.

Fisheries observers: An overlooked vulnerability for crime and corruption within the global fishing industry

Human fishery observers play an important role in monitoring fish stocks, providing scientific data upon which management organizations set applicable fishing limits and quotas to maintain sustainable populations. At-sea observers, however, sometimes sustain harassment from crews that object to being monitored, and at least one observer has disappeared or died under suspicious circumstances while underway every year since 2009. This exploratory paper examines inherent vulnerabilities within the monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) framework that nations and regional fisheries management organizations (RFMO) have adopted to support sustainable fish stocks. As rational actors, perpetrators of observer harassment, assault, and murder likely do so to manipulate observers’ monitoring role in the MCS framework to conceal illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and other criminal activities. Qualitative analysis of reporting on observer harassment and suspicious disappearances over the past 15 years indicates the following institutional, situational, jurisdictional, and physical conditions appear to contribute to observer safety issues—privatization of fishery observer programs, crime convergence on fishing vessels, conflicting maritime jurisdictional considerations, and harsh conditions endemic to the remote maritime environment. While recorded suspicious observer deaths are too few to draw general conclusions, most occurrences befell observers working for tuna RFMOs in the Pacific Ocean, and a disproportionate number of deaths were observers from Kiribati and Papua New Guinea. Alternative surveillance approaches such as Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) produce limited results without human observers. Future policies that could contribute to observer safety include applying lessons learned from international efforts to address maritime transnational organized crime and providing observers personal communications and safety equipment to directly connect with search and rescue entities if under duress.

The MSC approach for developing harvest strategies and harvest control rules for Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs)

Well-designed and robust harvest strategies are a key governance tool to achieve long term sustainability of target stocks. In some fisheries, however, such as those governed by Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs), the development and adoption of harvest strategies can be challenging. Seafood eco-labelling programs, such as the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), can be one way of incentivising fisheries to advocate for the adoption of harvest strategies and harvest control rules (HCRs). Here we illustrate the process through which the MSC Fisheries Standard was recently revised to guide the development and implementation of harvest strategies tested using management strategy evaluation, with particular focus on RFMOs. We identify three case studies that highlight the challenge of harvest strategy and HCR adoption: Indian Ocean skipjack tuna fisheries, Western and Central Pacific Ocean tuna fisheries, and North-East Atlantic mackerel fisheries. We discuss the problem statement that highlighted the challenges present when applying the previous MSC Fisheries Standard to stocks managed by RFMOs, and how the revised requirements within the MSC Fisheries Standard aim to overcome those challenges. These revised requirements provide an operational framework within the MSC Fisheries Standard for how RFMO-managed fisheries can implement ‘state-of-the-art' harvest strategies through management strategy evaluation. When applied by MSC certified fisheries, the new requirements are expected to contribute to delivering positive change with respect to implementing robust harvest strategies and HCRs across RFMOs, particularly in cases where there is a strong interest in the market benefits of certification.

Bycatch in drift gillnet fisheries: A sink for Indian Ocean cetaceans

AbstractIn 1992, the UN banned the use of large‐scale pelagic driftnets on the high seas (UNGA Resolution 46/215). Three decades later, however, drift gillnets remain one of the primary fishing gears in the Indian Ocean, accounting for approximately 30% of tuna catches in this ocean. Recent estimates indicate that several million small cetaceans have been killed in Indian Ocean gillnets over the past few decades. National agencies and the regional fisheries management organization charged with managing tuna fisheries, the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission, have yet to effectively document the bycatch of small cetaceans in these fisheries. Here, we review current information on cetacean bycatch in Indian Ocean drift gillnets and propose potential solutions to this important conservation issue.

Status and Conservation Effort of Distance Waters Fisheries in Indonesia

Distant waters fisheries in Indonesia are an important fisheries sector which accounts for foreign exchange from the export of tuna and the tuna like commodities. Lack of private investment and government support led to the development of these fisheries is not as fast as coastal fisheries. In recent years, the government has provided significant support for the development of offshore fisheries, such as implementation of a policy of aid 1000 units of larger fishing vessels 30 GT to fishermen to operate in Indonesia EEZ waters, and provided some policies that support the fisheries including Indonesia’s participation in regional fisheries management organizations (RFMO). This will support better conditions for business activities of the fisheries. By becoming a member of RFMO, Indonesia plays an active role in achieving global sustainable fisheries management. Nevertheless, some important issues and problems in particular tuna fisheries is a challenge that must be solved. This paper reviews the status of distant waters fisheries in Indonesia and conservation efforts as well as the management of fish resources

Virtual Voting in rfmos: A Procedural Odyssey at the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission

Abstract This article examines, from the perspective of international institutional law, the variety of procedural problems which arose following an online vote by secret ballot taken by the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (iotc) in 2021. By providing a detailed case-study of this novel instance of practice and the challenges it represents, this article aims to contribute to a better understanding of the institutional governance and procedural legal framework of regional fisheries management organizations (rfmo s). It first analyses the vote and the challenge to its validity. This article then constructs a taxonomy of the various procedural irregularities that were found to have occurred, the responsibility of institutional actors for their occurrence, and their legal consequences. The final substantive sections of this article examine how the iotc ultimately dealt with the situation and what potential role the available dispute settlement procedures could have had in addressing the discussed procedural irregularities.

The implementation of ACAP Best Practice Advice to mitigate seabird bycatch in fisheries: Issues and options

The Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) is a multilateral agreement which strives to conserve albatrosses and petrels by coordinating international activities to mitigate threats to their populations. One of the major threats that seabirds face is fisheries-induced mortality, or bycatch. In recognition of the serious nature of this problem, ACAP established a Seabird Bycatch Working Group (SBWG) to advise on actions that will assist in the mitigation and reduction of seabird interactions with fisheries. The SBWG regularly examines the range of measures available that can minimise bycatch and has developed “best practice advice” (BPA), a suite of tools and methods for trawl and longline fisheries. This BPA has been widely promoted by ACAP Parties and others within jurisdictions and at Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) and CCAMLR other over the last 10 years. To assess the levels of implementation of ACAP’s BPA for industrial fisheries we employed both a qualitative and semi-quantitative multiple method research design that comprised content analysis of documents and meeting reports from ACAP meetings, a review of current seabird conservation measures of all tRFMOs that had members which were also ACAP parties, and by conducting a survey that asked 13 questions in relation to the uptake and adoption of ACAP BPA. We confined our analysis to pelagic longline and trawl fisheries within the jurisdictions of both ACAP parties and non-parties. Our research identified a number of key gaps in the uptake of the BPA guidelines in these fisheries. Complete uptake of BPA was poor by ACAP Parties both within their jurisdictions, and in high seas fisheries managed through RFMOs. For Parties, the level of uptake was difficult to assess accurately because reporting to the Agreement has thus far been inadequate for this purpose. Uptake of BPA in high seas fisheries by non-parties and RFMos was also poor and unlikely to improve while ACAP Parties are unable to demonstrate commitment to their use in all national fisheries. The study findings provided advice and recommendations on addressing impediments to uptake that could lead to improved management of seabird bycatch in commercial fisheries.

Multiple lines of evidence highlight the dire straits of yellowfin tuna in the Indian Ocean.

Yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) are highly valued pelagic fisheries target species. Regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) are the principal mechanism that manage yellowfin tuna fisheries. Determining changes in population abundances is crucial for effective conservation and management. We use multiple methods for monitoring biomass trends and evaluating the status of yellowfin tuna in each ocean basin and show how additional, multiple lines of evidence can enhance our understanding of the conservation and exploitation status of this species. Our analysis of regional biomass trajectories and Catch-MSY++ assessments corroborate the findings of the most recent RFMO stock assessments suggesting yellowfin tuna in the Indian Ocean are in critical condition, while the Eastern Pacific yellowfin tuna population shows the lowest levels of exploitation. These results are supported by fisheries-independent data from baited remote underwater video systems (BRUVS), showing that the Indian Ocean yellowfin tuna population is the least common, least abundant, and smallest across all oceans. Our findings support previous claims of systematic and widespread overfishing of yellowfin tuna in the Indian Ocean and thus confirm calls to reduce current fishing levels to ensure the long-term viability of the species.

Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing in Southeast Asia: Trends and Actors

executive summary: This essay identifies trends and actors involved in illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in two of Southeast Asia's regional seascapes (the South China Sea and the Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape), explores the political and socioeconomic factors that enable IUU fishing, and offers recommendations to governments and other stakeholders. main argument IUU fishing threatens the food, ecological, and economic security of coastal communities in Southeast Asia's seascapes. The region is home to incredible marine biodiversity that supports commercially important fish stocks. However, IUU fishing, poor fisheries management, and bad governance—coupled with environmental degradation and a lack of monitoring, control, surveillance, and enforcement capacity—leave these stocks in a precarious position. The clandestine nature of IUU fishing can also attract crimes of convergence, including forced labor and trafficking of humans, arms, drugs, and wildlife. To counter IUU fishing, national governments in Southeast Asia should take steps to improve cooperation, build cohesiveness, and share data and relevant information with each other and with regional organizations. Likewise, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and regional fisheries management organizations should take a greater leadership role to facilitate data and information sharing between Southeast Asian governments. policy implications • Cooperative and joint stock assessments in the South China Sea and the Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape by governments, scientists, NGOs, and other stakeholders, with a focus on transboundary stocks, would significantly improve the monitoring and management of fisheries. • To bridge gaps in enforcement capacity, fisheries enforcement authorities should work with nontraditional partners, including local communities and trusted nations in the Indo-Pacific, such as the U.S., Australia, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. • Southeast Asian coastal states should work together to settle remaining maritime boundary disputes they have with each other and develop a cohesive regional bloc that strengthens their collective commitment to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and efforts to combat IUU fishing. • National governments and law enforcement should increase their capacity and technical capabilities to stop labor and human rights abuses on the water and in seafood processing facilities by working with NGOs, survivors, and other relevant stakeholders with expertise in the field.