On the occasion of a Ministerial Conference on Mediterranean fisheries, held at the European Commission on 27 April, GFCM members took stock of the current situation of fisheries in the Mediterranean and of past developments since the benchmark Venice Declaration in 2003. 

Mediterranean countries have unanimously recognized that, with less than 15 percent of Mediterranean and Black Sea assessed stocks fished within biologically safe limits, stagnant fleet numbers and decreasing catches, it was now time to move up a gear and take urgent all-encompassing management measures.  

Global figures are alarming but the Mediterranean can count on long-standing regional mechanisms to coordinate actions addressing the status of stocks and fisheries. In this respect, the GFCM is called to play a central and leading role in reverting the current trend.  

At its next annual session in May, the GFCM will be discussing its mid-term strategy to improve Mediterranean and Black Sea stocks in view of 2020 targets. “We stand ready to cooperate, together with the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department and its regional projects in the Mediterranean, for a better future and more sustainable fisheries in the region” said Abdellah Srour, GFCM Executive Secretary.