ABSTRACT
Over 1 billion people depend on seafood as their primary source of protein, and fishing is estimated to employ 34 million people in full- or part-time jobs producing over 81 million tonnes of seafood annually. The first-sale value of the world’s fisheries is $US100 billion. Marine fisheries - and fisheries in areas beyond national jurisdiction in particular - have historically been poorly managed or not managed at all. Overall, 31 per cent of the world’s fisheries are overexploited, 20 per cent of the global fisheries catch consists of unwanted bycatch and it is estimated that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing may comprise up to 30 per cent of the global fisheries catch. Overfishing has largely been eliminated in the United States, with good progress being made in Canada and the European Union. Fisheries may be managed under single-species, multi-species or ecosystem-based regimes. The ecosystem approach to fisheries management is currently being advocated by many states and the FAO as an approach that attempts to balance ecological and human well-being objectives through good governance. The FAO is responsible for reporting on the status of the world’s fisheries, providing information to decision-makers, and supporting regional fisheries management organizations. A number of binding and non-binding agreements have been developed to govern fishing and whaling. Rights-based approaches confer a private right to a public good. Marine property rights may be conceived of as tangible objects (e.g. territory, fish, oil and gas reserve) or intangible benefits or income streams (e.g. right to fish) recognized by some level of government. These approaches are used primarily in fisheries management and currently 15 per cent of the world’s catch is managed under this scheme.
