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INTRODUCTION

1. The third session of the Advisory Committee on Fisheries Research (ACFR) was held in Rome from 5 to 8 December 2000.

2. The session was attended by seven of the eight members of the Committee and by FAO staff, and was chaired by Mr Michael Sissenwine. The list of participants is attached as Appendix B.

OPENING OF THE SESSION

3. The session was opened by Mr Ichiro Nomura, Assistant Director-General, Fisheries Department. In opening the session, Mr Nomura acknowledged the very valuable contribution of the Committee to the work of the Fisheries Department and expressed the hope that by holding its session a few months before the session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI), and the preparation of the biennial Programme of Work and Budget, the Committee would provide valuable input for FAO's future fisheries programme of work. The full text of the Opening Statement is attached as Appendix D.

ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA AND TIMETABLE

4. The Committee adopted the Agenda as contained in Appendix A of this report. The documents which were before the Committee are listed in Appendix C.

REVIEW OF THE WORK OF THE COMMITTEE

PROPOSAL FOR IMPROVING GLOBAL REPORTING ON STATUS AND TRENDS ON FISHERIES

5. The Secretariat presented a Proposal for improving global reporting on status and trends on Fisheries (document ACFR/III/2000/2) which contained a draft paper on this topic for submission to the Twenty-fourth Session of COFI (to be held in Rome, in February 2001) and, as an annex to that paper, a draft International Plan of Action for Status and Trends Reporting on Fisheries (IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS).

6. The First Session of the Advisory Committee on Fisheries Research (ACFR 1) identified status and trends reporting on fisheries as one area of research for priority attention during its intersessional period through the formation of the ACFR Working Party on Status and Trends in Fisheries (WP/STF). The WP/STF reviewed the subject extensively and recommended the development of a proposal for an International Plan of Action for Status and Trends Reporting on Fisheries for eventual consideration by COFI. This recommendation was endorsed by the Second Session of the ACFR which agreed that the working party continue its work in the preparation of a draft international plan of action for review at the Third Session of ACFR in December 2000, prior to possible submission to COFI in February 2001 for consideration and decision. The WP/STF worked by correspondence during 2000 to develop the draft IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS.

7. The Committee noted that at all levels and particularly in some parts of the world, there was a need for improving the scope and relevance of fishery statistics presently collected and enhancing data collection and information systems for scientific and other use. It noted that there was a need for a better understanding of the relative contribution of all segments to the value of fisheries that was not adequately recognized at that time. It noted that there were areas such as inland fisheries, multispecies fisheries, small-scale fisheries and their socio-economic aspects in which new research and approaches were needed, and areas, such as aquaculture, where information and data already existed, should be more routinely assessed and systematically analysed.

8. The Committee welcomed the proposal and draft IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS and commended the WP/STP for its work which was a good response to ACFR's request. It recognized that, if adopted, the IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS would be central to implementation of several parts of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, and particularly for Fisheries Management (Article 7). The Committee therefore strongly endorsed that the proposal and draft IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS should be submitted to the Twenty-fourth Session of COFI for its consideration.

9. One substantive issue discussed was whether the scope of the IPOA should include aquaculture. The Committee recognized the great and increasing importance of aquaculture and the essential need for reliable data and effective status and trends reporting for aquaculture. However, aquaculture had distinctive requirements which needed to be addressed specifically and, in addition, standards and procedures for assessing status and trends for aquaculture were not as well developed as for capture fisheries. The Committee agreed that it was more realistic and pragmatic to start with what was already in place for capture fisheries and build on it, limiting the IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS to capture fisheries in marine and inland waters. The Committee recognized, however, that there was also a need for improved status and trends reporting for aquaculture at a later stage, but that this would be better handled in a separate initiative such as an equivalent IPOA for aquaculture.

10. The Committee reviewed the text of the IPOA in detail and suggested refinements. In particular it noted that in finalizing the draft text of the IPOA-STATUS&TRENDS the Secretariat should address the following issues:

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