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ABSTRACT

The thirty-first session of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) was attended by delegates from 19 Members of the Commission. The Commission reviewed the intersessional activities of its Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) and its Committee on Aquaculture (CAQ) and hold the first session of its Compliance Committee. Based on advice from SAC and proposals by Members, the GFCM adopted: three Resolutions, including two related to the GFCM statistical framework (on fishing effort and operational units data collection sets and on Geographical Sub-Areas [GSAs]), and one on the use of the 40 mm square mesh size in the codend of trawlnets. The Commission also adopted binding recommendations on fisheries management, including on diamond mesh size of trawlnets and on the Pelagos Sanctuary for the conservation of marine mammals, as well as three Recommendations emanating from the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) on bluefin tuna and on transshipment at sea. The GFCM strengthened the mandate of CAQ and adopted a new set up and modus operandi for the subsidiary bodies of the Committee. The Commission decided to strengthen its activities in the Black Sea. It acknowledged the importance of the five regional projects supporting the activities of the Committees and endorsed a series of amendments to its Rules of Procedure. The Commission agreed on its programme of work and adopted its budget for 2007, including the establishment within the Secretariat of a post of Aquaculture specialist.