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The chair of the Doha fisheries subsidies negotiations on 5 February acknowledged that despite “constructive engagement” during the last several days, “some significant divergences in positions and overall approach still remain” on various issues concerning subsidies contributing to overcapacity and overfishing (OCOF) ahead of the World Trade Organization’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) beginning in Abu Dhabi on 26 February.

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As previously reported in the SUNS, many developing countries seem to be sharply concerned over how the large subsidizers contributing to OCOF are going to be allowed to continue with their subsidies under seemingly weak two-stage sustainability criteria, as well as the alleged failure to include the issue of distant-water fishing in the list of prohibited subsidies.

The chair of the Doha fisheries subsidies negotiations at the World Trade Organization has issued a draft consolidated text aimed at a “final push” to conclude negotiations on disciplines on subsidies contributing to overcapacity and overfishing before the WTO’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) gets underway in Abu Dhabi on 26 February 2024.

The chair of the Doha fisheries subsidies negotiations at the World Trade Organization has issued a draft consolidated text aimed at a “final push” to conclude negotiations on disciplines on subsidies contributing to overcapacity and overfishing before the WTO’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) gets underway in Abu Dhabi on 26 February 2024. by D. Ravi Kanth

Given the paucity of time and the seemingly unbridgeable differences over several provisions in the chair’s draft text on fisheries subsidies, the chances of concluding an agreement on fisheries subsidies at the upcoming WTO’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) seem to be rather bleak.

Given the paucity of time and the seemingly unbridgeable differences over several provisions in the chair’s draft text on fisheries subsidies, the chances of concluding an agreement on fisheries subsidies at the upcoming WTO’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) seem to be rather bleak.

While the chair of the World Trade Organization’s General Council (GC) and the WTO Director-General said on 24 October that the two-day Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) ended on an optimistic note with clear guidance going forward, the Chairpersons’ Summary issued by them has raised some serious questions.

See full report for further details on Dispute settlement, TRIPS, Agriculture, Development, Fisheries subsidies, WTO reform, JSIs

In 2015 the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations stipulated that certain forms of subsidies that the fishing sector receive must be prohibited. However, the global fishing sector is complex and varied, and as such there remains a need for information on the distribution of subsidies between the different regions and their sub-sectors. This bottom-up study therefore provides up-dated and improved analyses of the financial support fishing sub-sectors receive from public entities. Estimates show that of the USD 35.4 billion of global fisheries subsidies provided in 2018, 19% went to the small-scale fishing sub-sector (SSF), including artisanal, and subsistence fisheries. Whilst more than 80% went to the large-scale (industrial) fishing sub-sector (LSF). Analysis by subsidy category and type shows, for example, that the majority of the subsidies that the LSF receive are in the form of capacity-enhancing subsidies (USD 18.3 billion) with fuel subsidies being the highest overall subsidy type (USD 7.2 billion). Fuel subsidies are especially harmful as they perpetuate fuel inefficient technology.