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ICFA Adopts Resolution On Tuna Management, Against IUU Fishing ff

8 October 2002 Iceland
The International Coalition of Fisheries Associations (ICFA) called upon its members to support efforts to match tuna fishing capacity to sustainable harvest levels, and to address such issues as illegal, unreported and unregulated tuna fishing, tuna farming and illegal trade of tuna. The organization, which met in Akureyri, Iceland in early September, adopted three separate resolutions on tuna management, including Limitation of Large-Scale Tuna Longline Fishing Vessels, International Tuna Management, and Promotion of Responsible Tuna Fisheries.

ICFA voted to "support the Organization for the Promotion of Responsible Fisheries' (OPRT) initiative to conserve and manage tuna resources, particularly the scrapping of flag-of-convenience tuna longline vessels." In its resolution, ICFA requested that the People's Republic of China limit the number of registered tuna longline vessels in accordance with the United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization's (FAO) International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity, and for other member states to seek multilateral agreements to reject tuna imports that are not caught under measures approved by global or regional fishing management organizations.

The International Coalition of Fisheries Associations is a broad coalition of Asian, European, North American and Oceanic commercial fishing organizations that promotes international cooperation between fisheries managers and seafood businesses worldwide.