Exellent and timely publication by FAO, that made me very happy for two reasons: it is an area I have been working for FAO and others, but also because they have chosen one of my photographs for the cover.
In fact, I just finished my presentation on the fisher's labour conundrum I’ll be presenting at the 17th INFOFISH World Tuna Trade Conference and Exhibition.
I recommend you read the whole from here, yet I quote some of the text and graphs that are key for me
Commercial fishing remains one of the world’s most dangerous occupations. FAO amended its global estimate of the number of fatalities fisheries in 2019 to 32 000 casualties per year. However, new research by the PEW Charitable Trust, Lloyds Register Foundation, International Maritime Organization (IMO), FISH Safety Foundation (FSF) and FAO, with contributions from many FAO Members, suggests that the number of fatalities within the fishing sector is likely much greater than 100 000 annually.
Most accidents and fatalities happen in small-scale fisheries. These fishers have not received safety training, the vessels they operate are generally unsafe and safety equipment is lacking on-board.
WHY FOCUS ON REGIONAL FISHERY BODIES?
In accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), flag States have the primary duty to take, or to cooperate with other States in taking, measures for their respective nationals as may be necessary for the conservation of the living resources of the high seas. Where appropriate, this cooperation shall take place through subregional or regional fisheries organizations.1
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development emphasizes the importance of regional and subregional dimensions, regional economic integration and interconnectivity in sustainable development. The regional level is the most appropriate level for establishing a collaborative framework to preserve and protect whole ecosystems efficiently while also providing opportunities for participating States to benefit sustainably from the services they render (Løbach et al., 2020).
The importance of RFBs and RFMOs for the management and conservation of fish and fisheries does not require more explanation here.
The role of RFBs and RFMOs in terms of promoting and ensuring safety and decent working conditions within the fleets under their management regimes has however not been recognized by either IMO, ILO. Nevertheless, the fisheries management and conservation mandates of these regional bodies have an impact on fishing vessel safety, the safety of fishing operations and the working conditions of fishing personnel. Therefore, it would be valuable to bring these regional bodies on-board in the improvement of safety and decent work in fisheries and make use of their frameworks and networks in fisheries to further the ratification and implementation of the international binding instruments on safety and working conditions in fisheries (e.g. CTA, C188, STCW-F and PSMA).
RFBs and are every day confronted with decent work and safety aspects on fishing vessels operating under their mandate. The accidents and fatalities that happen on vessels in the fleets that they manage are a concern to the RFBs. It is recognized that fishing is one of the most hazardous jobs in the world and that unhealthy and unsafe practices on board increase the risks for fishing crew and negatively impact on the economic viability and social acceptability of fishing fleets. The livelihoods of fishing households and their communities is at stake when many accidents happen. Moreover, climate change and extreme events are putting fishers at even greater risks than before as fishers are forced to fish further from shore or in new fishing grounds, with changing gears and weather conditions. These trends impact fishing fleet management by RFBs as well.
Within some RFMOs the understanding is increasing that it is important to ensure that vessels and personnel are safe and working conditions are decent. The benefits in terms of reducing search and rescue costs, medical and compensation expenses, inspection times, and reducing reputational risks connected with indecent working conditions (including child labour and forced labour) are better understood. However, in many regions the protection of human rights in the fishing sector is not obvious, and while some RFB members consider these subjects important, they receive limited attention from others.
There are many reasons why RFBs should support decent work and safety on fishing vessels operating under their mandate, including:
Fishing accidents and fatalities, slavery on board, disappearance of fisheries observers, and bad working conditions of fishers on board of vessels operating under an RFB regime reflect negatively on these organizations and can result in a bad image. The bad behaviour of one member may reflect on the other members in the collaboration.
RFBs are crucial for instigating change in their member countries – through awareness raising, development of fisheries management recommendations or measures, and in-country capacity development – and so can bring the fisheries sector in line with other sectors that are already addressing working conditions and safety.
Economic barriers to trade based on labour and safety issues are growing and RFB member countries might be impacted if they are not prepared.
Experience is growing in RFBs around the world that improving working conditions and labour rights for crew and observers is important, and that positive changes can benefit the industry, including through attracting qualified labourers.
Guidance exists for improving safety and working conditions on fishing vessels, and capacity development support is readily available to support RFB members in making the necessary transformative changes.
Mutually supportive international fishing safety instruments are available to guide RFBs. IUU fishing, safety of fishing vessels and fishing vessel personnel, decent working and living conditions and sustainable fisheries management are all connected.
RFB members have already approved the 1995 FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, the 2014 Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries and the 2021 COFI Declaration for Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture and may already be party to at least one of the relevant key binding international fishing safety instruments.
The objective of this study, carried out in 2021–2022, was to understand how safety and decent work on fishing vessels aspects have been incorporated into the work of the RFBs across the globe, to highlight efforts already undertaken, to share experiences learned to date and to identify additional priorities and gaps to address in the near future.
In addition, the study aimed to identify RFBs interested in developing action plans for increasing the attention of their membership to safety and decent working conditions on fishing fleets operating under their mandate.
Finally, the study served to inform FAO’s partner agencies in the United Nations, IMO and ILO, on the instrumental role of RFBs in promoting international fisheries instruments and improving safety and decent work in the world’s fisheries as well as in supporting members to conduct relevant training and capacity building with respect to labour laws and safety of fish workers.
Are safety and decent work priorities for the membership?
This is a really simple and good question… the graph below was very illuminating for me. The same % of countries think is a priority as those that don't... even if without fishers there is no fishing
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The conclusions presented here are drawn from the RFB survey conducted in October 2021 and the desk research carried out into activities of RFBs on safety and decent work in fisheries.
Thirty-seven RFB secretariats (19 RFMOs and 18 RFABs) participated in the survey of which the results have been presented in this circular. The RFBs have either an advisory function or have a mandate to adopt legally binding conservation and management measures for the fisheries resources in their areas.
The RFBs that participated in the survey show a large variation in terms of mandate (e.g. marine fisheries, specific species, inland fisheries, aquaculture), coverage area (e.g. high seas, deep sea, coastal or inland waters), membership (e.g. SIDS, LIFDCs, developed countries), and fleets (e.g. small-scale and industrial), and as a consequence have different situations and needs in relation to safety and decent working conditions in fisheries.
The survey showed that safety at sea is a priority for 51 percent of the RFBs. Thirty-five percent regard safety as important, but not a priority. Thirty-eight percent of the RFBs surveyed consider decent working conditions a priority. Decent working conditions are important, but not a priority for almost 30 percent of the RFBs.
Many RFBs are mandated through their basic texts, commission meetings and requests from members to take action on safety and decent working conditions on fishing vessels operating under their responsibility. The basic texts of RFBs provide the legal basis for any work on safety and decent working in fisheries for 51 percent of the RFBs. Commission meetings (61 percent), global and regional instruments (49 percent) and requests by members (46 percent) contribute substantially to RFB measures and actions to improve safety and decent working conditions on vessel operating under their mandates.
Conservation and management measures, especially for safety of observers, are often the entry point for work on safety and decent work standards by RFMOs. The obligations of members under international fishing safety instruments also play a role.
RFB secretariats support safety in fisheries through trainings and manuals (32 percent), awareness raising materials (32 percent), and recommendations and measures (24 percent).
Most RFB secretariats noted that decent working conditions in fisheries have not been addressed or are not within the mandate of these organizations. Twenty-seven percent of the RFB secretariats mentioned however that some awareness raising on decent working conditions in fisheries has taken place. Only a few RFBs prioritize decent working conditions in fisheries.
Since 2018, several RFBs have supported decent work and safety in fisheries through regional technical seminars organized by FAO in collaboration with the Apostleship of the Sea, IMO and ILO. These seminars aimed to address Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, decent work and safety in fisheries.
Knowledge of international fishing safety instruments (e.g. C188, Cape Town Agreement, STCW-F and FAO/IMO/ILO Safety codes and guidelines) is limited among RFB secretariats. The technical, financial and human capacity limitations within the secretariats impede their attention to safety and decent work.
The international instruments adopted to establish minimum standards for safety and decent working conditions on fishing vessels have not attracted the acceptance of many members and remain unchartered territory for many RFBs.
Many RFB secretariats recognize that development of an action plan would be beneficial to mainstream safety and decent work better in the management of fishing fleets under their mandates.
FAO is currently (2022) supporting WECAFC and BOBP-IGO with their action planning processes. It is expected that these first action plans will pave the way for other RFBs to adopt a similar approach and can help to showcase the instrumental role of RFBs in promoting international fishing safety instruments and improving safety and decent work in the world’s fisheries as well as in supporting members to conduct relevant training and capacity building with respect to labour laws and safety in the fishing industry.
The recommendations that can be drawn from the above conclusions are the following:
Awareness raising. RFB secretariats, supported by members, should promote understanding among the membership about binding and voluntary international instruments on fishing safety and decent working conditions.
Capacity building. RFB secretariats, supported by members, should provide technical guidance, develop training materials and organize capacity building activities to increase the capacity of the RFB membership on safety and decent working conditions on fishing vessels. The capacity of RFB secretariats to deliver on these “new” duties should be enhanced through training and additional staff allocation to the secretariats to implement safety and decent work related activities. RFB secretariats will also require additional financial support. For many of the secretariats, safety and decent work are novel issues and introducing the change required will demand investments for which funds may not be available in the current budget.
International collaboration. Collaboration across multiple international organizations (e.g. FAO, ILO, IMO, Pew Charitable Trust, Apostleship of the Sea), RFBs and national line ministries (e.g. fisheries, labour, maritime safety) should be enhanced to address the common goal of a sustainable fisheries, which is also safe and provides decent working conditions for all working on board of fishing vessels. The FAO/IMO/ILO Joint Working Group on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing and Related Matters (JWG) can be an important vehicle for interagency collaboration and coordination in the longer run as it is a permanent structure, based on agreed principles between the three agencies.
Assessment and planning. RFB secretariats, supported by members and international partners (e.g. FAO, IMO, ILO) should assess the safety and working conditions on the vessels operating under their governance, collect and analyse data on accidents and fatalities in their fleets, and develop action plans or strategies to improve the safety and working conditions on vessels of their fleets.
Sharing of experiences. Lessons learnt and knowledge acquired in the process of introducing safety and decent working conditions in fisheries should be shared across RFBs. Many of the RFBs have common socioeconomic, cultural, and legal backgrounds. They share similar realities and face related challenges. Hence, they can learn from each other’s experiences in making transformative changes on safety and decent working conditions in the fleets operating under their mandates.
RFB mandates. Some RFBs should review and consider updating their basic texts or adopt resolutions that mainstream social aspects of fisheries, including safety and decent working conditions, with the fisheries management aspects covered already by these RFBs. Modern fisheries governance requires attention to the working conditions of men and women who risk their lives while supplying seafood to the world.