WTO Director-General Urges Ratification of Fisheries Subsidies Agreement

The Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is urging member countries to expedite the ratification of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies to combat overfishing in the oceans.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala expressed concern about the far-reaching consequences of overfishing on global sustainability. She called upon journalists to play a pivotal role in encouraging their respective governments to join the nations that have already ratified the Agreement, thus contributing to the preservation of global fish stocks for the future.
“It is good to negotiate an agreement but getting it to enter into force is even better and for the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement where we are saying that our oceans are fifty percent over-fished, there is an urgency for us to ratify the Agreement and we cannot waste time in the ratification because the longer we wait, the more over-fishing there is,” she said.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala also appealed to the media for their support in complementing her efforts to secure the ratification of the Agreement.
“I have been going around trying to get this ratification because you younger people, this is your world and by then I would be in my grave and I would be bones but you the younger ones who are here, this is your ocean which is being depleted, this is your sustainability that is being damaged so you need to take responsibility,” she said.
The Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies represents a significant landmark, as it strives to ban detrimental subsidies in the fisheries sector that fuel overfishing and illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
The ratification of this Agreement will play a crucial role in ensuring the sustainable management of global fish stocks, a vital component of food security and the livelihoods of millions of people worldwide.