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Almost 200 delegates from States all across the world, as well as inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations, have gathered this week in Santiago, Chile, for the Second Meeting of the Parties to the 2009 FAO Agreement on Port State Measures (PSMA).

The meeting, inaugurated this morning by José Graziano da Silva, FAO’s Director-General, and José Ramon Valente Vias, Chile’s Minister of Economy, Development and Tourism, will run from 3-6 June.

It is the second of a series of biennial meetings that brings together Parties to the PSMA, FAO members and observers, to discuss matters relevant to the implementation of the PSMA.

The PSMA is the first binding international agreement to specifically target IUU fishing, by laying down a minimum set of standard information verification and inspection measures for Parties to apply when foreign vessels seek entry into their ports, or while they are in their ports. The applied measures to ensure proper detection of IUU fishing and thus, the prevention of fish caught from IUU fishing reaching national and international markets.

IUU fishing poses a major threat to the sustainability of fisheries resources and marine ecosystems, as well as the livelihoods and food security of legitimate fishers, including small-scale fishers, by undermining national and regional fisheries management and conservation measures.

The PSMA entered into force on 5 June 2016, and three years on, it already counts with 60 Parties, including the European Union as one Party on behalf of its 28 Member States.

This week’s meeting of the Parties will aim to establish the rules under which meetings of the Parties will be held, address the status and developments in the implementation of the PSMA, as well as propose a way forward for the transmittal, electronic exchange and publication of information among Parties.

The meeting is made possible by the kind hosting of the Government of the Republic of Chile, and the sponsoring of participation of 39 developing States by the Government of Norway.

See photos of the Opening Session, here.