The United States imports nearly 90% of its seafood from other nations. Some countries in the Latin America, Asia Pacific, and West African regions are overwhelmed by the increasing demand for their fisheries products, while many lack the necessary management and/or enforcement capacity to sustainably manage their marine resources. Conservation activities or their lack in countries outside the United States can either enhance or undermine our own fisheries management and conservation efforts.
Our international cooperation efforts focus on the following three priority areas:
1) Combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing through monitoring, control and surveillance initiatives
(2) Building capacity of countries to sustainably manage their fisheries resources – improving their fisheries governance; and
(3) Supporting the recovery of protected species and bycatch mitigation.
Monitoring, Control, and Surveillance Projects
Caribbean
- Support to the Caribbean Regional Working Group on Illegal Unreported and Unregulated Fishing to support the inaugural meeting of the Regional Working Group on IUU fishing.
- Support the implementation of the Interim Fisheries Coordination Mechanism for Sustainable Fisheries by providing support for the improved management of the queen conch and spiny lobster fisheries and strengthening catch and traceability schemes.
Central/South America
- Increase collaboration with the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, World Wildlife Fund and OSPESCA to convene technology transfer and training;
- Capacity building initiatives in Chile to support transferring scientific and regulatory knowledge to the Chilean society as a way to reach marine resource sustainability. Through innovative technology, Chile aims to bridge the information gap observed among science, fishermen and final consumers in relation to the biology, natural availability, fishing regulations, market opportunities and traceability of marine resources provided by small-scale fisheries in Chile.
