National Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity

Taiwan is surrounded by sea, and fishery has always been one of the important primary industries for its people. In the course of fisheries development, the industry has been facing changing fishery environment, and challenge of conservation and management, and sustainable utilization of fisheries resources. Thus, the government of Taiwan has always been playing high attention on the issue of fishing capacity, and seeking the most effective and long-term solution of the issue, in order to address the challenge brought from overcapacity. The work done in the past which includes promulgation of administrative orders restricting the increase of the tonnage of fishing vessels, and launching of a number of vessel buyback programs, can, in fact, be considered as actions required in the reduction of fishing capacity and progressive promotion of the objective as envisaged in the International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity (IPOA-Capacity). In line with the request of the IPOA-Capacity, and in order to fulfill the international commitment in the development and implementation of a national plan of action, for formulating a feasible policy in reducing Taiwan’s overcapacity in fishery, the competent fisheries authority of Taiwan, the Fisheries Agency, Council of Agriculture, the Executive Yuan, developed Taiwan’s National Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity (NPOA-Capacity).
The NPOA-Capacity is divided into 5 major parts, which include the History of Taiwan’s Management of Fishing Capacity; Fishing Capacity Management Plan; Management Measures on Key Fisheries; and Future Actions. It begins by introducing the past achievement of Taiwan’s management of fishing capacity; continues with the introduction of the NPOA-Capacity based on the IPOA-Capacity, including its principles, policy and objectives, review of the work of Taiwan’s management of fishing capacity which includes the competent fisheries authority of Taiwan, collection of information, assessment of fishing capacity, and management measures on fishing capacity, as well as international consideration and implementation of the NPOA. In addition, it also introduces Taiwan’s management measures on key fisheries, which include tuna longline fishery, purse seine fishery, squid and saury fisheries, precious coral fishery, flying fish roe fishery, larval fishery, and mackerel fishery. Finally, it gives an overview of the future actions according to the NPOA.
With this document, Taiwan explicates that being an important distant water fishing country, it is willing to express its commitment on the proper management of Taiwan’s fishing capacity, in accordance with the relevant international instruments on the management of fishing capacity adopted internationally, whereby progressively enabling Taiwan’s fishing capacity not to exceed the level of maximum sustainable yield, in order to maintain sustainability of the fisheries resources within the waters of Taiwan’s jurisdiction as well as that of the high seas.

keyword： National Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity