FAO launches Technical Assistance to Papua New Guinea
On Monday 6 December 2021, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the National Fisheries Authority (NFA) of Papua New Guinea agreed on the Workplan of Assistance for the effective implementation of port State measures and relevant international instruments to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
This activity is carried out under the framework of the “Support for the implementation of the PSMA and related instruments to combat IUU fishing” project funded by Sweden.
As a result of a process initiated last year and delayed due to the global pandemic, a Workplan of Assistance was elaborated by FAO which is anchored in the 2017 Strategy and Action Plan for the Implementation of the PSMA and Complementary International Instruments and Regional Mechanisms to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing in Papua New Guinea elaborated with the support of FAO.
The Workplan to be implemented in 2022, and based on the identification of the needs and priorities of the NFA, covers the following components: Review of the Institutional Framework through the bilateral agreements in place, and the setting up of a new inter-agency cooperation mechanism; Review of the MCS systems and tools and elaboration of an MCS Strategy and development of recommendations on risk assessment; Review of standard operating procedures; and training.
Papua New Guinea is in the process of becoming a Party to the FAO 2009 Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter, and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing. It is expected that the implementation of this Workplan will assist the country in implementing the obligations derived from the Agreement.