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More than 400 participants gathered in Antalya, Türkiye with the common goal to scale up science for effective fisheries management at the second edition of the Forum on Fisheries Science in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea (Fish Forum 2024).

The event, organized by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), is the most important scientific gathering dedicated to fisheries and related issues in the region. The 2024 edition was hosted by Türkiye’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and funded by the European Union. Across five days of lectures, panels, workshops and exhibitions, the conference provided a unique space for experts from 47 countries to discuss the latest developments in fisheries science, along with state-of-the-art environmental, oceanographic and socioeconomic research, and how best to apply this growing body of knowledge and tools to the real-world challenges facing the sector.

Read our press release on the conference

The Fish Forum unites scientists, fishers, stakeholders, researchers, engineers, academics, practitioners, managers and decision-makers from international organizations, administrations, institutions and universities, non-governmental organizations and the private sector, in view of continued and accelerated progress towards ensuring sustainable fisheries in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. All participants had the opportunity to submit abstracts, take part in side events, open stands or simply attend the sessions and discussions.

In December 2018, the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) organized the first ever Fish Forum at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy. This five-day event was the first of its kind for the region, encompassing perspectives on fisheries research from oceanographic, social science and economic standpoints. It gathered more than 450 participants from around the world, including scientists, researchers, engineers, academics, practitioners, managers and decision-makers, as well as 30 technical partners from international organizations and non-governmental organizations, other private sector stakeholders, and fishers.

The Fish Forum complements the GFCM 2030 Strategy for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, in particular Output 2 of Target 5, which aims to promote technical cooperation and boost scientific research and innovation by filling gaps in knowledge regarding specific cross-cutting themes and capitalizing on existing knowledge and research, as well as on scientific collaboration and best practices in fisheries and aquaculture, by consolidating technical networks and promoting the role of the GFCM.

The importance of the Fish Forum has been recognized by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly as an example of an efficient interface between science and policymaking. Similarly, it gained recognition for implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030), as well as for promoting strong cooperation with key international organizations. Its success has inspired similar events at the global level, such as the International Symposium on Fisheries Sustainability: Strengthening the Science–Policy Nexus, which was held by FAO in November 2019.