Implementation of International and Regional Instruments

2. International instruments contain structures and measures upon which to build long term sustainable fisheries. The key global instruments that countries should consider when implementing responsible fishing practices include the 1982 ‘United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea’ (UNCLOS), the ‘United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement’ (UNFSA), the FAO ‘Compliance Agreement’, the FAO ‘Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries’, the ‘International Plan of Action (IPOA) to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing’, the ‘IPOA for Reducing Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Longline Fisheries’, the ‘IPOA for the Conservation and Management of Sharks’ and the ‘IPOA for the Management of Fishing Capacity’. Relevant regional instruments include the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention (WCPFC) and the Agreement Establishing the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). To support these measures, Countries in the region are encouraged to:
2.1 work toward ratification, accession, and/or acceptance and full implementation, of UNCLOS and UNFSA;
2.2 work towards ratification and/or acceptance of regional fisheries management instruments, where appropriate; and
2.3work toward acceptance and full implementation