WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/RL/W/241 
28 September 2009 
 (09-4524) 
Negotiating Group on Rules Original:   English 
  
 
FISHERIES SUBSIDIES 
 
Communication from Brazil, China, Ecuador and Mexico
 
  
 The following communication, dated 25 September 2009, is being circulated at the request of 
the Delegations of Brazil, Ch ina, Ecuador and Mexico.   
 
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State of Global Fish Resources 
 
 We would start with a reference to the current status of global fish resources and the effects of 
this on developing countries.  It is impossible to fully understand the role played by S&DT in our 
discussions without appreciating that the question of th e health of global fish stocks is also one of 
development and livelihood and will remain so.   
  The most recent information we have is c ontained in the 2008 State of the World Fisheries 
and Aquaculture report by the FAO, and shows us th at worldwide fishing capacity continues to be far 
above sustainability levels.  Global fish stocks remain  under siege:  52 per cent of fish stocks are fully 
exploited with no room for expansi on, and 28 per cent are either over exploited, depleted or recovering 
from depletion.     This situation poses serious problems especially  to developing countries, where vulnerable 
communities experience the destruction of the resour ces they depend on for their livelihood.  In this 
context, the global community should be supportive of developing countries to realize their 
developmental and growth aspirati ons in a responsible, balanced and scientific manner so that the 
concerns of conservation and su stainability are addressed.   
  The WTO has been given an opportunity to make an invaluable contribution to remedying this crisis by effectively addressing the huge subsidi es historically granted to the fisheries sector by 
many of today's fishing powers.  Many intern ational studies, such as the World Bank 2008 "Sunken 
Billions" report, point out the high economic loss es caused by the fact that global marine fish 
resources are under pressure due to excessive, uncontrolled exploitation.    
Hong Kong Mandate 
 
 This is clearly the basis for the mandate given to us by our Ministers in Hong Kong to strengthen the disciplines on subsidies in the fishi ng sector, pursuing three objec tives:  the prohibition 
of certain forms of fisheries subsidies that contri bute to overcapacity, the prohibition of certain forms 
of fisheries subsidies that contribute to over-fishi ng, and the provision of appropriate and effective 
S&DT for developing countries.   
 TN/RL/W/241 
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   The mandate refers in detail to the S&DT issu e, stating that "appropriate and effective special 
and differential treatment for developing and least-d eveloped Members should be an integral part of 
the fisheries subsidies negotiations, taking into accoun t the importance of this sector to development 
priorities, poverty reduction, and live lihood and food security concerns".   
 
 The mandate reflects the reality of the cha llenge for developing countries, depicting the 
situation and the way-out to it with precision.  Wh ile requiring the prohibition of subsidies leading to 
excessive fishing effort and negatively impacting fisheries resources, it clearly recognises that the 
fisheries sector is a crucial one in many developi ng countries, where a role for subsidies cannot be 
excluded.  These two aspects (subsidies disciplines and developmental aspirations) are not 
contradictory and need to be reconciled if we ar e to achieve meaningful results in the fisheries 
subsidies negotiations.  This task is doable.    
Special and Differential Treatment 
  In order to fulfill the objectives mandated in Hong Kong, the provisions on special and 
differential treatment must provide effective, subs tantive flexibilities to developing countries, going 
beyond mere technical support or tran sitional provisions in the implementation of the new disciplines.  
On the other hand, they should be granted under adequate parameters a nd meaningful, effective 
conditionalities, so as not to undermine the overall objective of the disciplines.    
 Since we are discussing S&DT today, we reserve the right to comment further on the outline 
of those conditionalities at a later stage.  The key point to be stated now, however, is that the S&DT provisions must allow developing countries to devel op their fishing sector in a sustainable manner.  
This should therefore include national management sy stems suitable both to the type of fisheries in 
question and to the resource capability and cons traints of members, whilst addressing both 
overcapacity and over-fishing effects and referencing to  the best international standards and practices 
available.     In no case should conditionalities be inser ted which would hamper our countries' 
developmental aspirations by means of rendering th e S&DT provisions actually devoid of meaning.  
They should serve the goals enunciated in the Hong Kong mandate, allowing developing countries to 
achieve development priorities, poverty reduction, and address livelihood and food security concerns.  
After all, the legitimate goal of attaining sustainab ility of fisheries should be pursued in tandem with 
the no less important goal of human development.     Provided that adequate and effective conditiona lities are in place, there should be no fear of 
granting developing countries with substantive exceptions  to the prohibition.  In this respect, there is 
still some work to be done on the Chairman's Nove mber 2007 draft text on fisheries subsidies.   
  The exception for small-scale and artisanal fish eries is a crucial issue for millions of the 
poorest.  The November 2007 text and the questions of the Roadmap provide a basis for further discussion and elaboration, contingent on finding the ri ght balance in the definition or criteria of these 
fisheries so as to attain legitimate goals while not providing a loophole for circumvention.  The 
applicable management system requirements, if any,  should be simple, feasib le and adequate to the 
situation.     The S&DT provisions should not lose meaning or  effectiveness by the recourse to artificial 
distinctions and abstruse conditions.  What is ne eded with respect to larger-scale fisheries in 
developing countries consists in executing the Hong  Kong mandate in a way consistent with its 
overarching goal:  to bar harm ful fisheries subsidies that create over-fishing and produce 
overcapacity, as well as distort trade or production.     TN/RL/W/241 
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   As previously mentioned, these disciplines should not preclude developing countries from 
being able to develop their fisheries sector in a sustainable manner.  Moreover, complying with the 
disciplines should not be a matter of simply shifting fi shing efforts to certain kinds of boats, under the 
delusive assumption that some boats are auto matically "good" and others "bad".   
 
 In this respect, we see no ground for buildin g exceptions on the basis of parameters such as 
boat size or the area of capture.  The harmful or ha rmless effect of fisherie s subsidies should be all 
that matters.     The approach used in the November 2007 Artic le III.2(b)(2) of granting additional exceptions 
for boats up to 10 meters is a questionable one, si nce size or any other physical aspect are static 
parameters which do not reveal much about the e fficiency, or real capacity, or over-fishing capability 
of the vessel.     The exception under Article III.2(b)(3) is similarl y flawed.  Fish stocks do not abide by area 
restrictions conceived by human beings.  They enter and leave the high seas as they please, and it is 
not realistic to expect fisher-folk to stop their activ ities just because they entered international waters.  
Nevertheless, granting flexibility for activities perform ed on international waters  should not mean that 
developing countries are supposed to enjoy a blank cheque neither to subsidize nor to create over-
fishing or overcapacity.    
 In this context, it does not make sense to us  to preclude developing countries from being able 
to provide support to fishing activities in the high sea s.  Rather, we believe that, as part of the 
exceptions under S&DT, developing countries should be  allowed to subsidize operational and capital 
costs within the framework of a regional fisherie s management organisation or arrangement (RFMO) 
and under conditions such as science-based paramete rs (i.e., quotas, time and area closures, vessel 
registries and capacity limits as applicable) as  well as appropriate, e ffective and proportional 
sustainability criteria and fisheries management regimes – which will be defined under Articles IV 
and V.     Finally, we recall that the focus of these negotiations is and should remain on fisheries 
subsidies.  It is not about the duplication of effort s with other organisations and fora, nor the creation 
of redundant mechanisms.  Moreover,  we should be reminded of the guiding principle that the mutual 
supportiveness of trade and the environment should be enhanced through the disciplines we eventually adopt.    
Conclusion 
 
 We conclude by reiterating our strong support for WTO disciplines based on an effective 
prohibition of fisheries subsidies and effective S&DT.  This is the only outcome fully compatible with 
our common endeavour as mandated in Hong Kong.     
 
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