Analyses the concept of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and the international instruments which provide the legal and policy framework to combat IUU fishing. Palma, Tsamenyi and Edeson, University of Wollongong, Australia.

The IOPA-IUU is a voluntary instrument that applies to all States and entities and to all fishers. Following the IPOA's introduction, the nature and scope of IUU fishing is addressed. This is followed by the IPOA's objective and principles and the implementation of measures to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing. These measures focus on all State responsibilities, flag State responsibilities, coastal State measures, port State measures, internationally agreed market-related measures, research and regional fisheries management organizations. Special requirements of developing countries are then considered, followed by reporting requirements and the role of FAO.

This publication provides legislative templates to implement the FAO Agreement on Port States Measures to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. It presents a framework for mainstreaming the core provisions of the agreement into national legislation.

The objective of this guide is to provide a working document for port State authorities to use in the implementation of the IOTC Port State Measures Resolution (PSMR) which entered into force on 1st March 2011 and was amended in 2016 to include a provision on the electronic port State measures application (e-PSM). The content is divided into four chapters. The first chapter describes and summarises the development of port State measures by the international community and the development by IOTC CPCs of conservation and management measures that both reflect and complement the internationally agreed measures. The second chapter describes the requirements for interagency integration and coordination at the national level while implementing port State measures, including an overview of the broader system of port controls, integrating port State measures with other measures to combat IUU fishing and exchange of information among relevant national agencies and coordinate their activities in implementing the IOTC PSMR. The third and fourth chapters addresses operational and technical matters in view of providing guidance on best practice to national interagency cooperation and best practice to cooperation at regional. This guide should be viewed as a living document that can be revised and improved by all parties as experience is expanded in the implementation of the IOTC PSMR.

Nineteen ninety-two provided several painful reminders of the inherent hazards of oil tankers plying the high seas loaded with millions of gallons of crude oil. Within the space of a few days we witnessed a succession of catastrophic accidents: the foundering of the Greek AEGEAN SEA off the North-West coast of Spain, the breaking-up of the Liberian BRAER off the Shetland Islands, and the burning of the Danish-owned MAERSK NAVIGATOR near the entrance to the Indian Ocean's Malaccan Strait. Any one of these accidents could have been worse than the EXXON VALDEZ spill in Alaska in 1989, when 11 million gallons of crude oil leaked into Prince William Sound. This once again demonstrated the imperative need for an improved regime for the prevention of this kind of accident. The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which had been ratified by 54 states by the end of 1992, consolidates a number of novel provisions, one of which is port state enforcement for violations outside a state's jurisdiction. Port state control, as such, is a very old concept. It is based on the rule of international law, according to which a state exercises full jurisdictional powers within its internal waters and has the right to deny access to such waters. The 1982 Convention expands this jurisdiction and provides the port state with enforcement powers with respect to violations outside its national jurisdiction. Special emphasis is paid to the evolution of the port state enforcement regime; its formulation in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea; advantages and disadvantages and finally the implementation of the enforcement provisions of relevant maritime conventions. This book also analyses flag state jurisdiction and the repercussions of the adoption of the 1986 Convention for Registration of Ships. Special emphasis is given to a regional European agreement, the 1982 Paris Memorandum of Understanding, which attempts to strengthen the implementation of the existing international legal standards that could serve as a model for a future port state regime.

The objectives of the Technical Consultation were to address substantive issues relating to the role of the port State in combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing and to address principles and guidelines for the establishment of regional memoranda on port States measures to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing. Following its deliberations, the Technical Consultation approved a Model Scheme on Port State Measures to Combat IUU Fishing, strongly supported the proposed Programme of Assistance to facilitate human development and institutional strengthening in developing countries to promote the full and effective implementation of port States measures to combat IUU fishing, and supported the establishment of a database concerning relevant port State measures.

FAO is supporting the implementation of the 2005 FAO Model Schemes on Port State Measures to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, including at regional level. The main objective of the workshop was to consider GFCM Member's coordinated efforts regarding the strengthening and the harmonization of port State measures in the near future and, as a result, build on the requirements of the general guidelines for a GFCM control and enforcement scheme.

The Expert Consultation was convened with a view to facilitating the implementation of the 2001 FAO International Plan of Action to Deter, Prevent and Eliminate Illgal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (IPOA-IUU). The Expert Consultation also furthered collaboration with the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and undertook an exhaustive review of port state measures with respect to fishing vessels.

This document contains the report of the FAO Regional Workshop on Port State Measures to Combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing, which was held at Cape Town, South Africa, from 28 to 31 January 2008. The objective of the Workshop was to develop national capacity and promote bilateral, sub-regional and/or regional coordination so that countries will be better placed to strengthen and harmonize port State measures and, as a result, implement the relevant International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (IPOA-IUU) tools and the FAO Model Scheme and contribute to the development of a legally-binding instrument on port State measures. The Workshop addressed: background and framework for port State measures; global and regional issues relating to IUU fishing and port State measures, and the 2005 FAO Model Scheme on Port State Measures to Combat IUU Fishing; the 2007 draft Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing and the implementation of regional and national port State measures; adoption and implementation of port State measures by regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) and the implementation of measures in the Southern and East Africa subregion; operational and information requirements for effective port State measures; industry perspectives on port State measures and national responses to questionnaires; and key issues for further action and cooperation in strengthening and harmonizing port State measures. Working groups were formed to enhance the participatory nature of the Workshop and as a means of engendering broader and deeper discussion on concepts and issues relating to port State measures. In one exercise they addressed various aspects of port State measures, and recommended and prioritized areas for regional cooperation in implementing port State measures. They also identified further types of support needed to implement port State measures and in another exercise they considered certain thematic aspects relating to the FAO Model Scheme and the draft Agreement on port State measures. This exercise included legal aspects, information requirements, systems and inspection procedures, the results of inspection and training. Funding and support for the Workshop were provided by the FAO Regular Programme, by the Government of Norway through the Trust Fund for Port State Measures (MTF/GLO/206/MUL) and the FishCode Programme (MTF/GLO/125/MUL [Sweden-SIDA] [SWE/05/IUU Port State Measures/IUU fishing]). Funding was also provided by the UK Department for International Development (DFID).