ICCAT Annual Session 2025 – Closing Statement
Maïa Perraudeau, International Law and Policy Advisor, IPNLF
Emilia Dyer, Advocacy and Engagement Lead, IPNLF
Yesterday the 29th Regular Meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) came to a close after an intense eight days of negotiations. Overall, IPNLF is pleased to see some progress has been made on key issues, but there’s more to be done.
Key developments
Some key developments in the management of Atlantic tuna were achieved. These include the adoption of a Management Procedure for western Atlantic skipjack tuna, a stock which is vital for Brazilian coastal communities using low-impact, one-by-one methods and we celebrate this as a path to sustainable long-term management. We’re also pleased to note that the Management Strategy Evaluation process for south Atlantic albacore has been brought forward by two years, allowing earlier adoption of a Management Procedure. This was a priority for pole-and-line fisheries in the south Atlantic.
The challenges of achieving equitable distribution
Unsurprisingly, issues of equitable distribution of access to stocks continue to plague the Commission. IPNLF was pleased to see signs of recovery in the iconic Atlantic bluefin stock. This meant that, under the existing Management Procedure, the Commission could increase the TAC by 7833 tonnes. However, distributing this increase proved very challenging. While quota was provided to a number of new entrants and increases were spread among parties, there continues to be a huge gulf between the quota available to the largest and smallest harvesters, allowing historical inequities to persist.
Many parties highlighted the challenges faced by those with the smallest quota to develop economically viable fisheries. IPNLF was relieved to see concrete changes to the measure as a result, designed to ensure that such parties were not penalised by under-utilisation clauses.
IPNLF continues to urge ICCAT to prioritise allocation to the most low-impact fishing methods, in line with Article 6.6 of the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, which provides that “Where proper selective and environmentally safe fishing gear and practices exist, they should be recognised and accorded a priority in establishing conservation and management measures for fisheries”. One-by-one fisheries, like pole-and-line and handline, have minimal impact on tuna stocks, least interaction with the broader ecosystem, and the greatest socio-economic benefits for communities in coastal states. We further support recognition of the special requirements of developing States as set out in Article 24 of the UN Fish Stocks Agreement.
In terms of process, IPNLF is concerned that adjustments to the allocation table during the negotiations were not made in a principled or transparent manner, as was recognised by a number of parties during the meeting. While pragmatic backstage deals will inevitably remain part of the story of RFMO negotiations, IPNLF stresses the importance of transparent and principled allocation processes as a keystone to genuinely sustainable long-term management. This is especially pertinent as ICCAT undertakes the critical task of allocating yellowfin tuna catches. (Unfortunately, given the focus on bluefin tuna at this meeting, discussions on yellowfin were pushed back to future intersessional sessions, although the Commission noted this to be an urgent priority.) We were therefore pleased that the Commission highlighted using the upcoming performance review process as an opportunity to directly address transparent and fair allocation mechanisms.
Need for further transparency on lost fishing gear
IPNLF was broadly supportive of the aims of a proposal updating the ICCAT requirements for abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG). Among other changes, the proposal would have ensured that longline gear was included in the scope of the ALDFG measure, which IPNLF viewed as an important step. On the other hand, however, we were seriously concerned because the proposal also aimed to exclude fish aggregating devices (FADs) from the measure’s scope.
IPNLF made an intervention on this topic as we felt very strongly that this update was not representative of the pollution and ghost fishing risk that drifting FADs pose. Chronic deployments of heavy gear designed to attract marine life means lost, abandoned, and discarded drifting FADs pose a particular risk to megafauna species and critical coastal and deep-sea habitats, with the potential to undermine other conservation efforts, such as marine protected areas. Recent research estimates that over 35,000 drifting FADs are deployed annually in the Atlantic alone. Although estimates of drifting FAD loss rates are not reported for the Atlantic, they have been estimated as high as 90% in some regions, which could mean more than 30,000 lost, abandoned or discarded drifting FADs a year in the Atlantic. Further data is critical to grasp the scale of this phenomenon.
From a legal perspective, we were further concerned that the proposal excluded FADs from the definition of fishing gear. FADs are widely understood to be a type of auxiliary fishing gear in international instruments, for example across documents produced by the FAO, including the International Standard Statistical Classification of Fishing Gear. Moreover, the proposal’s definition of fishing gear was based on the definition in MARPOL Annex V and the IMO’s Guidelines for the Implementation of MARPOL Annex V specifically give FADs as an example of fishing gear in paragraph 1.7.8.
Ultimately, we were disappointed that incompatible positions led to the withdrawal of this proposal – with both longline fleets and fleets using drifting FADs seeking to be excluded from the scope of the rules. IPNLF is of the view that this situation underlined the need for clearer rules on abandoned, lost, and discarded FADs as part of a broader push to strengthen ICCAT FAD measures. For example, IOTC Resolution 24/02 includes separate definitions for abandoned, lost, and discarded drifting FADs respectively and applying these definitions in ICCAT could be a way forward. IPNLF strongly urges ICCAT to ensure its measures include all gears which pose a risk of contributing to the phenomenon of ALDFG in the Atlantic Ocean.
Keeping an eye on next steps
As noted, a key focus moving forward will be allocation of yellowfin tuna catches, which is particularly urgent given that the yellowfin TAC has been regularly exceeded. We are excited to see how these discussions progress over the course of intersessional meetings although realistically it may take the Commission more than a year to reach agreement. Further efforts are also required to see ICCAT adequately address bycatch and secondary catch species.
ICCAT is the world’s largest RFMO in terms of membership, with a diverse set of parties spanning the globe, and each step forward should be celebrated as an achievement of international cooperation. We look forward to continuing to work with the myriad ICCAT scientists, delegates, and observers involved as we advocate for low-impact tuna fisheries.