Ráðstefna um áhrif alþjóðavæðingarinnar á sjávarútveginn

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It’s a great pleasure for me to join you at this Workshop on globalization in the fisheries sector, and the opportunities and challenges it raises. I will discuss in general about globalization and if the international and national governance structures are sufficiently strong to cope with the pressures from globalization. Furthermore I will discuss the urgent need for a better management of shared stocks which will, when achieved, open multiple opportunities in the fisheries business. Thirdly the consumer perception of fisheries sustainability and finally the changes in the fisheries value chain as a result of globalization.

Increased trade is a cornerstone of development and has the capacity to increase prosperity. Iceland has witnessed first-hand the positive economic effects of trade through globalization. In the course of a few decades, the Icelandic population has come from poverty to enjoy one of the highest living standards in the world. We not only believe, we know that trade works and millions of people could be lifted out of poverty like the Icelandic nation in the past. The positive impacts of globalization are, among other things, improved economic growth, which is a goal of all authorities of all countries. I have at least never heard any government say that it doesn’t want a higher growth. With increased economic growth, education can be improved, poverty reduced, children can be fed and so on and so forth.

There are though different views on the pros and cons of globalization. Some say globalization can increase threats to sustainability of natural resources where effective management measures are not in place. Others point out that while the process of market opening may be beneficial overall for jobs and growth; it also brings out disruptive transformation, particularly for less qualified and more vulnerable workers and it can increase inequality. The process of increased globalization will continue and there is a need to carefully study its impact on the fisheries sector and the economy at large. This is necessary in order to identify appropriate policies and measures, which can help the fisheries sector to adjust successfully to new global developments, mitigate negative effects and derive the maximum benefit. We cannot erect protective walls and resist change.

In order for trade to have the capacity to increase prosperity in the fisheries sector we have to have an appropriate fisheries management system in place. Increased trade has contributed to rising fish prices and improved market access, which in turn has increased profitability of fishing operations. If there isn’t an adequate management system in place that provides fishers with the right set of incentives, then trade can result in fishers resorting to IUU fishing or damaging fishing practices. They could try to increasing their effort, which will cause or exacerbate overfishing which, in the long term, reduce yields, income, and welfare. Negative impacts such as overfishing and overcapitalization may also result from heavy subsidization in the absence of an effective fisheries management system. I strongly believe that we must try to limit harmful subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing. Hopefully we will see progress to that extent in the current Doha rounds at the WTO. Subsidies and other economic distortions, have served as obstructions to free trade in fisheries production. It therefore lays a burden on fish producing nation and definitely leads to overexploitation of fish stocks. One can therefore say with full confidence that isolationist policies are adversary to the idea of good and responsible fisheries management. Not least with reference to this fact I would like to urge all those who want to exploit new potential in fisheries to bear this in mind. A prerequisite to a progress and maximum yield in exploiting our natural marine resources is free trade for fishery products on a global scale.

About ninety percent of the global fish catch is within zones of national jurisdiction. The bulk of fisheries management problems occur, therefore, in these areas. Governments must be aware of the state of their fisheries to be able to implement effective policies aimed at preventing resource depletion and the wastage of fisheries inputs and to facilitate stock rehabilitation. Commercial fisheries need more effective management. All fisheries require management especially where it is lacking, wastage of fisheries inputs and fish resources is inevitable. It should neither be surprising nor necessarily derogative of national governance worldwide. Benefits from good governance are quite obvious in the developed countries and this has been the case for some time. This is because their capacity for governance is more evolved. Furthermore, countries have very much to gain from improvements of fisheries performance. Much of the global fishing capacity and stocks are already fully exploited. We must be mindful of that.

Consumer perception of fisheries sustainability is increasing. Societal awareness of fisheries resources and the impacts of fishing activities on the environment continue to increase. Many ethical concerns relate to the societies perceptions of what is good or bad and therefore to the question of what are our duties and obligations. Ethical issues in fisheries and aquaculture influence significantly the scope and approaches used in fisheries, by fishermen and by the broader society in relation to fisheries resources. The perception of what constitutes as an ethical behavior in relation to fisheries differ from one society to another. The value systems of societies are converging as a result of increased globalization of public awareness of problems that natural resources face. Development of this kind is influenced by the prominence of global issues such as, the increasing role of the market and vastly expanded trade in fish and fish products, the use of new biotechnologies in fisheries and aquaculture, excessive pressure on fishery resources and many other factors. The ideal objective of developing an ethical framework for consumers and producers in the aquaculture and fisheries sector is to ensure that they, who engage in these activities, will contribute to food safety, tackle the issues of malnutrition and hunger in less developed countries. Despite efforts, most of all fishing areas in the world have fisheries that are, unfortunately, not utilized sustainably and are there for coping with major problems of overfishing and poor economic performance, which are symptoms of overcapacity. Overcapacity and overfishing are increasingly significant signs of conflict and social stress both over the allocation of these limited resources among different users and the access right to fisheries resources. The basic solution to the problems of fisheries governance will ultimately require setting up a rights based management system. Such a system will clarify, more fully, who gets what and will align the behavioral incentives of stakeholders. It also needs to be designed so that, even though catches are limited, the management system will create a positive incentive to capture the benefits of technological innovations and other value adding strategies and not to overinvest in capacity. Systems of transferable quotas and individual quantitative need to be effectively put in place, in situations where individuals compete among themselves, to reinforce their rights and responsibilities to communities. Similarly, where communities are the predominant social unit, effective community based system of transferable quotas will need to be designed to try to allocate utilization rights and responsibilities to communities. And finally, management systems will have to be able to distinctly address the issue of payment for the right or privilege to use the world’s fisheries resources for their private gain.

Parallel to the increase of trade in fish and fishery products, the issue of fish trade and food security has become very important. In this respect eco-labeling has become a very important issue in fisheries. The Scandinavian countries have for the last years been working on issues regarding eco-labeling or another kind of documentation of responsible fishery management. This is done to meet increased requirements from large buyers of seafood products. To begin with the main objective was to create a wide international agreement on guidelines for eco-labeling schemes. These kinds of guidelines were endorsed in a meeting in Committee of Fisheries at FAO in March 2005. Labels on products convey product information to consumers. In addition to fulfilling necessary regulatory requirements in import markets, a number of labels have been developed to enable marketing people to target specific segments of consumers in their marketing efforts. Among the more recent labels are those that are claiming to be fair trade and environmentally sound practices. Some countries fear that their sovereign right to fishery management might be infringed by eco-labeling schemes. Though, eco-labels schemes may be attractive to consumers in some markets it is not clear if consumers are willing to pay more to cover the costs. If not, then the producers will have to pay the price. About 50 percent of fish exports come from developing countries and with that in mind eco-labeling will have particular consequences for producers in these countries. We must bear in mind that eco-labels can also have the effect of an additional tool in fisheries management, alongside with more traditional controls. A large proportion of consumers in many important markets for fish and fishery products are increasingly concerned with the sustainability of fish stocks. It is therefor clear that these consumers take a special interest in products with specific labels that certify the use of environmentally friendly production methods and the sustainability of the resource.

A question we need to ask our self is what affect has the globalization had on the fisheries value chain for the last decades? The fisheries value chain is, as we know it, the process that raw material passes through from capture fisheries, i.e. aquaculture and wild harvesting, to the delivery of a final product to the consumer. It includes the processors and traders of the raw material from where it enters a factory until the produced product has been sold, the distributors who move the product from one location to the next, retailers who make buying decisions based on consumer preferences and finally the consumer buys the product. This chain has changed because of globalization and outsourcing has become a keyword. Globalization has in fact transformed the nature of international economic interaction. It is not entirely the internationalization of free trade and financial flows between national economies. Countries are producing where they have a comparative advantage and are less dependant of being able to make everything themselves. A good example of this is the outsourcing of filleting to China instead of doing it domestically. Trade and transactions between countries have increased dramatically with improved transportation and communication linkages. In fact, the world’s economies affect each other and penetrate each other economic domains because companies are becoming more and more multinational. They work across borders. The affect has been that outsourcing of activities has transformed and linked financial and labour markets globally. The impacts of globalization are regional, national, local and international.

To sum up. One of the main challenges governments face today is to manage fisheries in a responsible way to ensure responsible and sustainable use of resources as well as economicly efficiently. A sound management system is essential to ensure sustainable exploitation of fishing stocks and to fight back against overcapacity and overfishing. Parallel to increased globalization, the issue of fish trade and food security has become very important. There are both positive and negative affects resulting from globalization. Positive affects are greater than negative affects and we cannot resist change and erect protective walls. Globalization in the fishing and aquaculture sector is not showing any signs of slowing down. In fact, indicators point out the exact opposite.

Thank you for your attention!