Tuna RFMO Transshipment Analyses

Current monitoring and regulatory controls over at-sea transshipment are inadequate, as there are few guarantees that all transfers are being reported and observed. These gaps in oversight create opportunities for illicit activities, such as misreporting or non-reporting of catch. These circumstances can also foster conditions that are conducive to transnational crimes such as trafficking in weapons, drugs and people, as well as poor working conditions.

Securing strong oversight of transshipment is critical to protect those who abide by the rules and ensure that others who seek to undermine the health and value of the fishery do not receive an unfair advantage by being able to move or land fish which had been illegally caught.

Using the carrier vessel portal, we are producing a series of reports exploring transshipment activity in the five tuna regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs). The reports are submitted as informational papers for policy makers attending annual tuna Commission meetings and will be posted here as they become available.