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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Working Group on VMS and related controls system (WGVMS) was held in person on 2 May 2023 in Rhodes, Greece. The meeting was attended by 76 participants who assessed  progress made towards the implementation of VMS, including on the basis of Resolutions GFCM/44/2021/7 on the implementation of a winch sensor system for demersal fisheries in the Adriatic Sea (geographical subareas 17 and 18), GFCM/44/2021/8 on the implementation of a vessel monitoring system and GFCM/44/2021/9 on the implementation of an electronic logbook. The WGVMS concluded that a decision on a regional GFCM VMS will be taken by the Commission at its next annual session based on a technical report to be prepared by the GFCM Secretariat in the upcoming months. Additional actions were discussed and recommended as relating to inspections, sightings, the monitoring, control and surveillance portal and small-scale fisheries catch reporting systems.