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This document provides information on FAO’s current work in addressing issues of bycatch and discards, as they relate to fisheries management, fishing operations and practices, and sustainable livelihoods, in support of the International Guidelines on Managing Bycatch and Reduction of Discards. The following activities are currently being carried out by FAO:

• Global assessments of discards to provide the up-to-date global scale of amount and rate of discards in various fisheries and trends in discarding, to highlight fisheries management issues and practices associated with discards
• Trawling best practices to mitigate bycatch, discards, seabed and other collateral impact towards more sustainable trawl fisheries
• Means and methods to mitigation bycatch and associated mortality of marine mammals in fisheries and aquaculture to protect venerable marine species and biodiversity
• Guidelines on the marking of fishing gear and measures to reduce abandoned, lost and otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) and ghost fishing mortality associated with ALDFG, as well as to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing
• Strategies for trawl fisheries bycatch management in the Coral Triangle and Southeast Asian waters (REBYC-II CTI) to strengthen institutional frameworks, to enhance capacity to manage fisheries, and to provide better communication, awareness and knowledgesharing
• Sustainable management of bycatch in Latin America and Caribbean trawl fisheries (REBYC-II LAC) to improve institutional and regulatory frameworks for trawl fisheries, to strengthen bycatch management and responsible trawling practices, to promote sustainable and equitable livelihoods, and to disseminate information for long-term benefits to the region.

Notwithstanding the progress made to date, it is recommended that more work be carried out to more effectively implement the International Guidelines on Managing Bycatch and Reduction of Discards through, inter alia:

• Greater technical assistance to support the development of data collection protocols and to collect data on bycatch and discards, especially in Developing States and Small Scale Fisheries
• Greater effort to investigate causes, incentives and disincentives related to uptake of bycatch and discard mitigation technologies and strategies for implementing proven technologies
• Research on the impact of bycatch on food security and livelihoods, and means and mechanisms on alternative income generation opportunities including utilization of sustainable bycatch and otherwise discarded catch
• Greater capacity-building efforts to support field testing and demonstration of bycatch and discard mitigation technologies, effective bycatch management planning, and livelihoods diversification to ensure decent job opportunities and incomes

Effort to develop best practice guidelines and fishing gear management strategies for various fishing gears, especially those gear types and fisheries with high discard rates and seafood wastes FAO’s work on fisheries bycatch and discards, both globally and regionally, contributes towards SDG1 (end poverty), SDG2 (zero hunger), and SDG 14 (sustainably use and conserve the oceans), and target SDG14.1 (significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, including marine debris), SDG 14.2 (sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems, avoiding significant adverse impacts), and SDG14.4 (end IUU fishing and destructive fishing practices).

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