Illegal Fishing in EU Waters: NGO Alliance Formed

To combat illegal fishing in the European Union (EU), Oceans 5 announces the formation of a coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with a grant of over $1 million per year for three years.

A sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Oceans 5 is an international funders’ collaborative that works to improve global ocean health by controlling overfishing and establishing marine reserves.

At a time when ocean conservation is more important than ever, Oceans 5 collaborates with NGOs and their partners to protect oceans worldwide and recently attended the launch event for the Global Ocean Commission report in Brussels, which contains practical proposals for restoring ocean health.

With the coordination of the Environmental Justice Foundation, Oceana, The Pew Charitable Trusts, and World Wildlife Fund, along with additional support by the Angell Family Foundation, this coalition will focus on four objectives:

• Promote effective implementation of the illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) regulation by European Union Member States;
• Enhance overall compliance and identify practical improvements that can be made, such as promoting electronic reporting;
• Collect information on international IUU activities to support the European Commission’s “yellow card” and “red card” process; and,
• Support European leadership by encouraging major seafood importers to control IUU fishing.

“Together, with this new coalition, we are confident that we can help curtail the proliferation of illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing,” said J. Charles Fox, Program Director of Oceans 5. “The European Union is the world’s largest seafood market. It has been a leader in tackling pirate fishing. Our goal is to continue to support and advance that leadership.”

For additional information about Oceans 5, their grantmaking or existing projects, visit http://oceans5.org