Combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing

THRUST 3. IMPROVING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS AND APPROACHES FOR

3.1.2 ASEAN Catch Documentation Scheme (ACDS)

Another activity was carried out by SEAFDEC to support the implementation of the “ASEAN Guidelines for Preventing the Entry of Fish and Fishery Product from IUU Fishing Activities into the Supply Chain.” As one of the management tools for combating IUU fishing and enhancing the competitiveness of ASEAN fish and fishery products in the region, the

“ASEAN Catch Documentation Scheme (ACDS)” was established for marine capture fisheries. Undertaken by MFRDMD in collaboration with the SEAFDEC Secretariat, the ACDS Concept was designed to enhance the traceability of marine capture fisheries in the ASEAN region, covering the domestic and international trades.

The ACDS includes five main documents, namely: 1) Catch Declaration (CD); 2) Movement Document (MD); 3) Catch Certification for exportation (CC); 4) Processing Statement;

and 5) Re-export Certificate (RE). The ACDS Concept was endorsed at the 25^th Meeting of the ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Fisheries (25ASWGFi) held in May 2017, and subsequently adopted by the SOM-39^th AMAF during the same year.

In 2017, SEAFDEC started to pilot test the application of the ACDS in Brunei Darussalam, where the basic information on the existing traceability procedures of fish and fishery products in the country was gathered during the “First Consultative Visit” in 2016. Results of the analysis had been used for the development by SEAFDEC of the electronic-ACDS (eACDS) with the cooperation of the Fish Market Organization (FMO) of Thailand. On 29 January-2 February 2017, the “Second Consultative Visit” was organized to introduce the draft eACDS and discuss the establishment of validation and Competent Authority Units for issuing the ASEAN/Brunei Darussalam Catch Certificate. Pilot testing of the ACDS in Brunei Darussalam was then officially launched during the Inaugural Ceremony of the 49^th Meeting of the SEAFDEC Council in April 2017.

After the launching of the ACDS, the “First On-site Training on the Use of eACDS” was organized in Brunei Darussalam on 19-21 June 2017. Attended by relevant stakeholders, the Training focused on the use of web-based and mobile applications of the eACDS to issue Catch Declaration (CD) and Movement Documents (MD) for verifying the route of the fish catch in the supply chain, i.e. from sea to processors or local and domestic markets in Brunei Darussalam. Back-to-back with the training was the First eACDS Committee Meeting to discuss on the improvements of the operation and workplan. SEAFDEC then proceeded

Launching of ACDS pilot testing in Brunei Onsite training on the use of the eACDS

For the other AMSs, SEAFDEC conducted a consultation visit to Malaysia on 22 March 2017 to introduce the process of developing the eACDS, and subsequently to Viet Nam on 28- 29 October 2017 to introduce the eACDS

to relevant stakeholders including the concerned governmental agencies, and the public and private sectors involved in the supply chain of fish and fishery products.

As a result and upon the request from the D-Fish of Viet Nam, SEAFDEC introduced and demonstrated the eACDS to their officers on 4-5 December 2017 in Hanoi, Viet Nam.

During the 2-day meeting, discussion was also made on the future plan to promote the application of eACDS in Viet Nam.

3.1.3 Management of Fishing Capacity

In response to the request of the AMSs, SEAFDEC intensified its efforts in developing the Regional Plan of Action (RPOA) for the Management of Fishing Capacity (RPOA-Capacity), which was endorsed during the 22^nd ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Fisheries in 2014.

The RPOA-Capacity was subsequently endorsed by the 48^th Meeting of the SEAFDEC Council and the 24^th Meeting of the ASWGFi in 2016, and adopted by the 38^th Meeting of AMAF also in 2016. Since then, the AMSs that still do not have the NPOA-Capacity or similar approaches in place, have been encouraged to develop the respective countries’ NPOA- Capacity. Meanwhile, SEAFDEC continued some activities related to this aspect, which is the

Training on use of mobile applications for eACDS Committee Meeting for the eACDS with the completion of the eACDS for Brunei Darussalam, which is meant not only for local and domestic markets, but also for the issuance of Catch Certification (CC) or ASEAN Catch Certification (ACC) for the export market. The “Second On-site Training” was subsequently convened on 17-18 October 2017 for DOF officers for them to transfer the knowledge on eACDS to various groups of stakeholders such as buyers, processors, and exporters in Brunei Darussalam, as well as the web-based and mobile applications for issuing the Catch Certification by the Competent Authority. This was followed by the “Second Meeting of the eACDS Committee for Brunei Darussalam” on 19 October 2017 to discuss and improve the system for smooth operation, as well as the future activity on monitoring and evaluation of the ACDS pilot testing activities in Brunei Darussalam.

Consultation visit to Viet Nam

regional/sub-regional stock and risk assessment of neritic tunas, i.e. longtail tuna (Thunnus tonggol) and kawakawa (Euthynnus affinis) in Southeast Asia. From the results of the stock and risk assessments carried out in 2017, management measures have been developed by SEAFDEC which are applicable to the management of fishing capacity. The proposed management plan for the shared stocks of longtail tuna and kawakawa in the Southeast Asian region was subsequently noted by the SEAFDEC Council at its 40^th Meeting and by the 25^th Meeting of the ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Fisheries (See 4.2 on Regional Cooperation for Tuna Fisheries Management). Recently, SEAFDEC in consultation with the Member Countries also exerted efforts in strengthening the sub-regional cooperation for management of fishing capacity by establishment Monitoring, Control and Surveillance (MCS) Network for the Gulf of Thailand, Northern Andaman, and Southern Andaman sub- regions by building upon the existing national initiatives.

3.1.4 Regional Fishing Vessels Record (RFVR)

In support the global initiatives in combating IUU fishing, SEAFDEC/TD implemented the project “Promotion of Countermeasure to Reduce IUU Fishing,” focusing on the development of the Regional Fishing Vessels Record (RFVR), and regional cooperation for the implementation of Port State Measures. To continue the compilation of the RFVR, TD convened in 2017 the “Regional Technical Consultation on Evaluation of Implementation and Utilization of the Regional Fishing Vessels Record (RFVR) for vessels 24 meters in length and over as a Management Tool toward Combating IUU Fishing in ASEAN” from 12 to 14 September 2017 in Bangkok, Thailand. Attended by the RFVR National Focal Points and policy makers from Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam, the RTC came up with: 1) updated information from the AMSs in reducing IUU fishing, 2) progress on the utilization, issues and problems related to the RFVR for vessels 24 meters in length and over, and 3) strategies and way forward for the improvement, promotion and utilization of the RFVR Database for vessels 24 meters in length and over, to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing in the region.

SEAFDEC also supported the national initiatives in combating IUU fishing. In this connection, SEAFDEC provided technical support to the Fisheries Administration (FiA) of Cambodia in 2017, for the development of their fishing vessels licensing database system. Through their database system, Cambodia could easily share their vessels data with the RFVR Database.

Regional Technical Consultation on Evaluation of

Implementation and Utilization of the RFVR for On-site Training on Implementation of Fishing License Database System for FiA Cambodia

TD then organized the “On-site Training on Implementation of Fishing License Database System for FiA Cambodia” from 31 August to 1 September 2017 in Koh Kong Province, Cambodia in collaboration with the FiA. During the training, the structure of the fishing license database system as well as steps for accessing and providing raw data inputs to the database system were established.

3.1.5 Regional Cooperation to Support the Implementation of Port State Measures Regional cooperation to support the implementation of Port State Measures (PSM) in the Southeast Asian region has been strengthened by SEAFDEC. Under the project “Promotion of Countermeasure to Reduce IUU Fishing,” discussions were facilitated by SEAFDEC/

TD in collaboration with partners and relevant institutions, particularly FAO and the U.S.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through the USAID-Regional Development Mission for Asia (RDMA), on the conduct of regional and onsite-training sessions to support the implementation of PSM in Southeast Asia. Although capacity building was identified as a priority for implementing the PSM, the training scheduled in 2017 was postponed to February 2018 due to difficulties in acquiring the resource persons on the subject matter. Moreover, while considering the recommendation of the 19^th FCG/

ASSP Meeting, SEAFDEC continued to seek the assistance from other relevant international organizations for the conduct a regional review of the national laws and regulations of the AMSs that could enhance the effectiveness of the implementation of PSM Agreement, by focusing on the identification of the legislative gaps in combating IUU fishing.

3.2 Promotion of the Ecosystem Approach for Fisheries Management