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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The eleventh meeting of the Working Group on the Black Sea (WGBS) of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) took place in hybrid modality in Constanta (Romania) from 22 to 24 July 2025. The meeting reviewed the work carried out during the 2024–2025 intersession in relation to data collection, stock assessment, management of selected fisheries, small-scale fisheries as well as work on the interactions between fisheries and the ecosystem, including all activities within the framework of the BlackSea4Fish project. The WGBS formulated advice on: i) data collection and quality indicators; ii) the status of Black Sea stocks; iii) the management of priority species and key fisheries, including a coordinated toolbox of fifteen existing and potential technical measures to support sustainable turbot fisheries and reduce the bycatch of harbour porpoise; iv) bycatch and selectivity; v) small-scale fisheries; vi) value chain; vii) fishing capacity; ix) climate change; and x) future functioning of the WGBS. Finally, the WGBS agreed upon its work plan for 2025–2027 in support of GFCM 2030 Strategy for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea (GFCM 2030 Strategy) activities that would be coordinated, among others, through the BlackSea4Fish project.