COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT EVALUATION Accompanying the document Recomendation for a Council Decision authorising the opening of negotiations on behalf of the European Union for the conclusion of a protocol to the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement with the Government of Cook Islands
Date: 2020-06-09
Institutions: Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, European Commission
Subjects: Cook Islands, catch quota, fishing agreement, fishing area, fishing rights, negotiation of an agreement (EU), protocol to an agreement, ratification of an agreement, sea fishing, sustainable fisheries

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 9.6.2020 SWD(2020) 102 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT  EVALUATION  Accompanying the document Recomendation for a Council Decision authorising the opening of negotiations on behalf of the European Union for the conclusion of a protocol to the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement with the Government of Cook Islands {COM(2020) 227 final} - {SWD(2020) 103 final}  
 
 
Table of contents 

1. 

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................ 2 

Purpose and scope .......................................................................................................... 2 

2. 

BACKGROUND TO THE INTERVENTION ..................................................................................... 2 

Description of the intervention and its objectives .......................................................... 2 

3. 

IMPLEMENTATION/STATE OF PLAY ............................................................................................ 4 

4.  METHOD.............................................................................................................................................. 5 

5.  ANALYSIS AND ANSWERS TO THE EVALUATION QUESTIONS ............................................ 6 

6. 

CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................................... 8 

ANNEX 1: PROCEDURAL INFORMATION ............................................................................................ 10 

ANNEX 2: STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION ....................................................................................... 12 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Purpose and scope 

Bilateral  sustainable  fisheries  partnership  agreements  (hereafter  -  SFPAs)  between  the 
EU and third countries are covered by the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) Regulation.1 
SFPAs  help  to  implement  the  CFP  objectives  internationally,  ensuring  that  fishing 
activities  of  the  EU  fleet  outside  Union  waters  are  based  on  the  same  principles  and 
standards  as  those  applied  in  EU  waters.  SFPAs  are  based  on  the  principles  of 
sustainability  and  best  available  scientific  advice,  transparency,  non-discrimination, 
solidarity  through  partnership.  All  in  all,  SFPAs  contribute  to  the  establishment  of  a 
governance framework for external fishing activities.2 Furthermore, the EU commitment 
to  promote  oceans  governance  at  a  global  level3  should  be  incorporated  in  newly 
negotiated SFPAs.  

The  Council  Conclusions  on  the  external  dimension  of  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy 
adopted on 19 March 2012, calls for an ex-post and ex-ante evaluation to be carried out 
by the Commission before negotiating a new protocol.4 The need for an ex-ante and ex-
post evaluation with an aim to inform decision- makers, before the negotiation directives 
by the Council are adopted is also confirmed in Article 31(10) of the CFP Regulation.  

This  staff  working  document  (SWD)  presents  the  results  of  an  ex-post  and  ex-ante 
evaluation  of  the  Sustainable  Fisheries  Partnership  Agreement  between  the  EU  and  the 
Cook  Islands  (2016  –  2020).  This  evaluation  covers  the  period  from  the  provisional 
application of the Protocol on 14 October 2016 to March 2020. The ex-post evaluation is 
made on the basis of assessment criteria: effectiveness, efficiency, economy, coherence, 
relevance,  EU  added  value  and  acceptability.  The  ex-ante  analysis  focuses  on  the 
identification  of  the  main  problems  and  needs,  the  objectives  expected  to  be  achieved, 
available  options  (renewal  or  non-renewal  of  the  Agreement  /Protocol,  modified  and 
improved Agreement/Protocol) and their impacts together with the associated risks. The 
analysis also explains the possible benefits of a new Protocol as well as its added value 
for the EU. 

2. 

BACKGROUND TO THE INTERVENTION 

Description of the intervention and its objectives 

To explain the logic of this intervention, it is important to explain the rationale of SFPAs. 
SFPAs consist of three major parts: Agreements, Protocol and Technical Annexes. While 
once negotiated SFPA Agreements are automatically extended, the Protocols have to be 
renegotiated before their expiry. SFPAs are rendered operational through implementation 
Protocols  that  contain  Technical  Annexes.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  the  evaluation  is 
needed (as explained in the introduction), in order to decide whether it is beneficial or not 
renewing the Protocol and, if so, under which conditions.  

EU concludes fisheries partnership agreements with third countries to enable the EU fleet 
to fish surplus resources in the exclusive economic zone  (EEZ) of partner countries (in 

1  Regulation  (EU)  1380/2013  of  11  December  2013  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy  (OJ  L354, 

28.12.2013, p. 22). 

2  Overview of SFPA: http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/cfp/international/agreements_fr.   
3  

Joint communication: International ocean governance agenda for the future of our oceans (JOIN(2016) 
49. 

4  Doc. 7086/12 PECHE 66. 

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this case –  the Cook Islands), in a legally regulated environment and in exchange for a 
financial  contribution  by  the  EU  and  ship-owners.  The  EU  contribution  is  made  up  of 
two separate components: 1) EU access contribution that gives access for the EU fleet to 
waters and fisheries resources of a partner country; and 2) EU sectorial support devoted 
to development of the fisheries sector in partner countries. The EU public contribution is 
complemented by contributions paid by EU ship-owners. 

Each SFPA is an exclusive agreement: once in place, EU vessels can only fish under this 
SFPA,  and  cannot  enter  into  private  agreements  with  the  partner  country.  The  SFPA 
ensures a level-playing field and establishes minimum standards for sustainable resource 
management as it includes provisions prohibiting the granting of conditions that are more 
favourable to other foreign fleets. The implementation of the Agreement and its Protocol 
is  managed  by  a  Joint  Committee,  which  meets  at  least  once  per  year,  composed  of 
representatives of both parties.  

The  first  fisheries  agreement  between  the  EU  and  the  Cook  Islands  was  negotiated  in 
2015, was provisionally applied since 14 October 2016, and entered into force on 10 May 
2017.  This  agreement  shall  apply  for  eight  years  from  the  date  of  the  start  of  its 
provisional application. It shall be tacitly renewed for additional periods of eight  years, 
unless  notice  of  termination  is  given.    The  EU  concluded  the  Agreement  by  Council 
Decision (EU) No 2017/418 of 28 February 2017. 

Under the current Protocol of four years (14 October 2016 till 13 October 2020), the EU 
fleet is allowed to fish in the Cook Islands’ fishery areas for highly migratory species as 
listed  in  Annex  1  of  the  1982  United  Nations  Convention  on  the  Law  of  the  Sea. 
Indicative  annual  fishing  opportunities  total  7  000  tonnes.  The  Protocol  provides  for 
EUR 385 000 for the first and second year, and of EUR 350 000 for the third and fourth 
year,  from  the  EU  budget  as  financial  compensation  for  access.  In  addition,  EU  ship-
owners pay authorisation fees based on prices set in the Protocol for the quota allocated. 
EUR 350 000 per year are also provided from the EU budget to support the Cook Islands 
sectoral fisheries policy.  

The negotiation of the new Protocol will imply the re-evaluation of various components 
of the protocol, such as indicative annual fishing opportunities, quotas agreed, financial 
compensation based on prices (EU and ship-owners), electronic catch reporting. As far as 
strengthening the Cook Islands’ capacities on the sustainable management of the fisheries 
policy, it is  important  that the sectoral  support continues to  focus on:  (i) enhancing the 
livelihoods  of  artisanal  fishermen,  (ii)  reinforcing  monitoring,  control  and  surveillance 
capabilities, (iii) strengthening the food safety authority and (iv) enhancing the capacity 
of  Cook  Islands’  Ministry  of  Marine  Resources  fishery  administration  to  implement 
sustainable  fishery  policies.  In  this  light,  the  sectorial  support  contribution  paid  by  the 
EU could also be reassessed. 

Important to note, that bilateral cooperation between EU and the Cook Islands should be 
looked in a larger context in the framework of regional cooperation. To do so DG MARE 
works in close cooperation with other Commission services, such as DEVCO, and with 
the EEAS in order to ensure coherence in actions. 

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3. 

IMPLEMENTATION/STATE OF PLAY 

As regards the implementation of the Protocol, a number of areas are identified in order 
to  reflect  what  the  situation  was  like  before  the  intervention  started,  and  how  it  was 
expected to develop and other relevant points of comparison. 

Utilisation  of  fishing  opportunities.  Utilisation  of  fishing  opportunities  in  terms  of 
number  of  vessels  has  been  moderate  (50%)  throughout  the  period  subject  to  this 
evaluation. The reference tonnage is set at 7 000 tonnes of highly migratory species. 

EU purse seiners currently active in the Pacific Ocean are all flagged to Spain. There are 
only  two  EU  purse  seiners  active  in  the  Pacific  Ocean.  There  were  four  purse  seiners 
active in the Pacific Ocean, but 2 of them moved to the Indian Ocean as from September 
2015,  when  the  Fisheries  Protocol  with  Kiribati  expired.  The  relatively  low  rate  of 
utilisation  of  fishing  opportunities  since  Protocol  application  can  be  explained  by  the 
departure of the above mentioned two EU purse seiners, because they accounted for most 
of the fishing capacity of the Western-Central Pacific Ocean EU purse seine fleet. 

According to data available, the two EU purse seiners spent 29 days fishing in the Cook 
Islands’ EEZ in 2017, and 52 days in 2018. The average catch per day was 23 tonnes in 
2017,  and  42.5  tonnes  in  2018.  For  the  EU  purse  seine  fleet,  which  includes  relatively 
modern fishing vessels, an average catch of 40-45 tonnes per day is an expected baseline. 
2018  catches  per  day  are  aligned  with  this  baseline.  For  2017,  catches  per  day  are 
significantly below this baseline, suggesting poor fishing efficiency in the Cook Islands 
EEZ  attributable  to  the  learning  curve  the  EU  operators  had  to  undergo  to  locate  and 
catch tuna in the zone. Provisional catch data available for 20195 seems to confirm this 
increasing trend. 

Economic  analysis.  Based  on  catches  obtained  as  a  result  of  fishing  opportunities 
available and average first sale prices of the different tuna species caught, the turnover of 
EU purse seiners under the current Protocol is approximately EUR 1.8 million per year 
on  average  over  the  2017  -  2018  period,  varying  between  EUR  1  million  in  2017  and 
EUR 2.6 million in 2018. Direct Gross Value Added (GVA) estimates take into account 
operating expenses borne by EU tuna vessels to prosecute their activities. It reflects the 
economic  wealth  generated  by  the  EU  fishing  activities.  From  estimates  based  on  the 
operating accounts of EU tuna purse seiners benefiting from fishing opportunities in the 
Cook  Islands’  EEZ,  the  GVA  generated  by  EU  tuna  vessels  has  been  close  to  EUR 
730 000  on  average  over  2017  and  2018,  varying  between  EUR  500 000  in  2017  and 
EUR 956 000 in 2018. Gross Profit (GRP) is calculated by subtracting costs of labour 
(i.e.  wages  paid),  access  fees  paid  by  EU  ship-owners  under  Protocol  conditions,  and 
other taxes,  from  GVA. GRP provides a preliminary indicator of EU fleet  profitability. 
However, GRP does not represent the net profit of fishing companies concerned since it 
is also used to remunerate the capital invested (depreciation, dividends) and to pay taxes 
to which fishing companies are liable in their countries of origin (corporate taxes, etc.). 
According  to  the  study,  the  EU  fleet  GRP  has  been  positive  on  average  over  the  two 
years, with an average of EUR 157 000 over the period. 

Employment  analysis.  Concerning  direct  employment,  the  number  of  full-time 
equivalent  (FTE)  jobs  on  the  two  EU  tuna  purse  seiners  concerned  by  the  Protocol  is 
slightly  in  excess  of  78  for  activities  in  the  entire  Pacific  Ocean.  Estimates  of  indirect 

5 Provisional catch data for 2019 : 2933 t; for 2018 it was 2098 t. 

4 

 
                                                 
employment indicate that almost 32 FTEs are supported by the Protocol in upstream and 
downstream ancillary industries, with a large majority of them (90%) in the downstream 
sector  (tuna  processing).  For  Cook  Islands,  the  Protocol  does  not  support  indirect 
employment  in  the  absence  of  significant  economic  interactions6  between  EU  purse 
seiners and economic entities registered in the Cook Islands. 

Sectorial  support.  The  sectoral  policy  support  contributing  directly  to  the  government 
expenditure  is  broken  down  into  four  main  areas:  (i)  enhancing  the  livelihoods  of 
artisanal  fishermen  (38%),  (ii)  reinforcing  monitoring,  control  and  surveillance 
capabilities (12%), (iii) strengthening the food safety authority (24%) and (iv) enhancing 
the  capacity  of  Cook  Islands’  Ministry  of  Marine  Resources  fishery  administration  to 
implement sustainable fishery policies (26%). The Cook Islands have been successful 
in implementing the sectoral support. It includes, among others, the refurbishment of 
and  equipment  for  the  Cook  Islands’  Fisheries  Monitoring  Centre  and  Water 
Quality/Chemistry laboratory, implementation of a support scheme for artisanal fishers, 
provision  of  safety  equipment  for  artisanal  fishers  and  strengthening  the  Cook  Islands 
observer  programme.  While  visibility  of  EU  support  is  ensured  for  some  concrete 
realisations, there is still a need to raise awareness of the wider Cook Islands population 
on the infrastructure contributions and other benefits of the sectoral support. 

4. 

METHOD 

Short description of methodology 

The evaluation was supported by a study that was carried out by an external consultant. 
The evaluation study was conducted between December 2019 and March 2020, under the 
guidance of  an  inter-service group  (ISG)  and  in  the  framework  of  the  terms  of  
reference.  The methodology included analysis of available documentation and data, and 
consultation of Cook Islands and EU stakeholders (see Annex 2). The evaluation report 
was  prepared  in  line  with  EU  guidelines  (including  the  ‘evaluation  toolbox’),  in 
particular  on  how  to  assess  impacts  on  other  countries,  and  methodological  elements  
specific    to    the    external    dimension    of    the    CFP    (e.g.  methods    for    assessing    the 
socio-economic benefits of fisheries agreements).  

Limitations and robustness of findings  

The  findings  of  the  study  are  robust  and  reliable.  The  methodology  for  this  evaluation 
included a review of literature and data, and consultations (some face to face, and some 
remotely)  with  stakeholders  in  Cook  Islands  and  in  the  EU.    In  addition,  secondary 
sources analysis and literature review complemented data from interviews. 

6   The port of Avatiu in Rarotonga does not have the dock space/installations nor harbour area for real 
transhipment  activity  for  eventual  frozen  container  export.  EU  operators  acknowledged  the  lack  of 
interactions with Cook Islands territory underpinned by the inadaptation of the port of Rarotonga for 
large scale tuna vessels, and the lack of qualified personnel (e.g. refrigeration specialists, stevedorers) 
to  handle  unloading  of  catches.  No  purse  seiners  use  Cook  Islands  ports  for  their  landing  / 
transhipment  operations.  In  the  absence  of  economic  interactions  between  the  EU  purse  seiners  and 
economic  entities  registered  in  the  Cook  Islands  through  port  calls  in  Cook  Islands,  sales  of  tuna  to 
local industries or employment of local workforce, indirect GVA accruing to Cook Islands is nil. The 
only value-added components benefiting to Cook Islands are access fees paid by EU ship-owners and 
the compensation for access and sectoral support paid by the EU. 

5 

 
 
                                                 
5. 

ANALYSIS AND ANSWERS TO THE EVALUATION QUESTIONS 

The  Protocol  between  the  EU  and  the  Cook  Islands  generally  meets  the  conditions  of 
effectiveness, efficiency, economy relevance, coherence, acceptability and the EU added 
value. The current Protocol can be broadly described as win-win deal for both parties, for 
the Cook Islands on one side and the EU and ship-owners on the other.  

Effectiveness. The ex-post evaluation of the current shows that the SFPA succeeded in 
achieving  its  main  objectives.  The  fishing  opportunities  negotiated  for  the  EU  fleet  in 
Cook  Islands’  EEZ  are  aligned  with  limits  imposed  in  the  regional  context  and  do  not 
generate  specific  threats  to  tuna  stocks  nor  on  marine  ecosystems.  The  activities  of  the 
EU  tuna  fleet  in  Cook  Islands’  EEZ  are  monitored  through  the  reporting  requirements 
set  out  in  the  Protocol,  in  conformity  with  both  standards  of  the  CFP  and  the  relevant 
Pacific  Regional  Fishery  Management  Organization,  the  Western  and  Central  Pacific 
Fisheries  Commission  (WCPFC),  which  include  in  particular  an  obligatory  100% 
observer  coverage.  Unilateral  measures  implemented  by  EU  operators  through  their 
Fisheries  Improvement  Plan  produced  interesting  results  in  terms  of  promotion  of 
Electronic Monitoring System (i.e. shared video records of fishing operations taken by a 
network of cameras installed in different locations of the vessel) of fishing activities) that 
Cook Island is now considering to expand to other foreign fleets accessing its EEZ. 

Concerning  the  Protocol  objective  of  protecting  the  interests  of  the  EU  long  distance 
fleet,  the  evaluation  reveals  that  the  Protocol  effectiveness  is  good  overall.  The  SFPA 
provides fishing opportunities in waters from which the EU purse seine fleet obtains on 
average 13% of its catches in the Western Central Pacific Ocean in 2017 and 2018, and 
which are utilised by 100% of EU purse seiners active in the West-Central Pacific Ocean. 
However,  the  overall  effectiveness  of  the  Protocol  is  undermined  by  EU  catches  below 
the reference tonnage and the utilization of fishing opportunities by only two of a total of 
four  purse  seiners  which  could  be  authorised.  The  Protocol  has  not  been  effective  in 
promoting  economic  interactions  between  fisheries  sectors  of  the  two  parties,  but  this 
objective was clearly out of context for consideration of the Protocol, given the structural 
situation of Cook Islands. 

Sectoral  support  funding  provided  by  the  EU  is  effective  in  contributing  to  overall 
government budget and expenditure on fisheries administration, control and enforcement, 
artisanal fisheries and the food safety authority. 

Efficiency.  The evaluation indicates that the Protocol is  not  fully efficient.  The fishing 
opportunities  negotiated  have  not  been  fully  utilised,  for  the  reasons  explained  above, 
with catches remaining below the reference tonnage fixed by the Protocol to establish the 
level of EU financial compensation. Compared to other SFPAs concluded by the EU with 
Coastal States for access to highly migratory species, the cost of fishing opportunities in 
Cook  Islands  waters  is  relatively  high,  but  less  than  the  minimum  access  fee  paid  by 
other  foreign  operators.  The  SFPA  Protocol  generated  a  positive  return  on  investment 
with EUR 4.34 value-added multiplier for every EUR 1 invested in access from the EU 
budget on average between 2017 and 2018. 

Economy.  EU sectoral support  matches well  with  the Cook  Islands’ needs  and is  fully 
absorbed,  and  the  EU  has  disbursed  access  payments  and  financial  contributions  for 
sectoral support in a timely manner consistent with the Protocol. 

Relevance. The Protocol is relevant to address the needs of the EU in terms of promotion 
of sustainable fishing practices in external waters, the needs of EU purse seine operators 
in terms of access to productive fishing grounds, and the need of Cook Islands in relation 
to technical and financial partnership for implementation of the national fisheries policy. 

6 

 
For  the  EU  party,  relevance  of  the  Protocol  is  critical,  considering  that  the  SFPA  with 
Cook Islands is the only active SFPA in the region7 since 2016. 

Coherence. The SFPA Protocol is coherent with the current CFP in general and with the 
overarching  WCPFC  conservation  and  management  regime.  According 
this 
evaluation, the basis of the access arrangements for the EU fleet negotiated between the 
two  parties  under  the  Protocol  are  compatible  with  the  international  commitments  of 
Cook Islands for managing fishing effort in its waters, and EU fleet for fully complying 
with  applicable  measure  while  in  the  Cook  Islands’  EEZ.  The  sectoral  support 
component  of  the  agreement  is  utilised  to  address  strategic  actions  for  which  funding 
may be lacking at national level, in coherence with other EU regional interventions in the 
region,  in  particular  under  the  EDF  regional  indicative  programmes  for  the  Pacific 
Region 

to 

The  EU  added  value.  There  is  a  strongly  positive  EU  added-value  through  SFPA 
mechanisms for access  and for sectoral support. Compared to any other mechanism for 
gaining  fisheries  access  for  EU  vessels  in  the  purse  seine  segment,  the  Agreement  has 
delivered a wide range of valuable benefits to both the EU and Cook Islands parties, in 
terms of sustainability and national development.  

Acceptability.  EU  purse  seine  operators  are  satisfied  with  the  conditions  set  up  by  the 
Protocol and support its renewal. However, they would like to see an improved efficiency 
of the observer programme while fishing in the Cook Islands’ EEZ. 

Ex-ante evaluation  

The  ex-ante  evaluation  of  a  possible  future  protocol  to  the  EU/Cook  Islands  SFPA, 
outlines the key needs to be met by both Cook Islands and the EU.   

Shared needs of both parties are:   

  sustainable resource exploitation, and   
  a fair sharing of benefits between the two parties.   

It describes and assesses two possible options.   

a)  The renewal of the Protocol implementing the SFPA concluded between the EU 

and Cook Islands for an extended multiannual period (status quo), or 

b)  The non-renewal of the Protocol. 

In reviewing the results of the two options, the evaluation finds that option b) could result 
in  very  significant  negative  impacts  for  both  parties  in  terms  of  reduced  financial  and 
social benefits, weakened the EU position within WCPFC as flag State, in particular with 
regard  to  cooperation  on  scientific  research  and  governance  to  promote  resource 
sustainability, and control and surveillance of fishing activities. It concludes that option 
a) would better meet evaluation criteria.  

The  conclusion  of  a  new  Protocol  will  create  a  binding  instrument  covering  both  the 
conditions  of  access  of  EU  vessels  to  the  Cook  Islands’  EEZ  and  the  conditions  for 
implementation, with sectoral political dialogue for associated funding. 

While most of the modalities of the current Protocol are in line with the principles of the 
CFP  (management  measures  aligned  with  conservation  and  management  measures 

7   Negotiations  with Kiribati are currently on hold, pending the current status of  “IUU-yellow card”  of 
this  country.  They  could  resume  as  soon  as  Kiribati  demonstrate  significant  progress  in  the 
implementing measures defined in the action plan agreed with the EU. 

7 

 
 
                                                 
adopted  by  WCPFC,  non-discriminatory  access  modalities,  deployment  of  decoupled 
sectoral support for the access component), a new Protocol should, as far as possible and 
depending  on  negotiations,  consider  appropriate  adjustments  to  seek  a  better  alignment 
between the financial compensation for access and fishing opportunities exploited by EU 
purse seine vessels.  

Furthermore,  the  renewal  of  the  SFPA  with  Cook  Islands  could  contribute  to  the 
reactivation of other SFPAs concluded with other Coastal States of the Western-Central 
Pacific  Ocean  (e.g.  Kiribati,  Solomon  Islands,  Federated  States  of  Micronesia),  thus  
promoting, inter alia, a level playing field for tuna fisheries in the region.  

6. 

CONCLUSIONS 

Therefore, from the two options considered, the renewal of the Protocol at the end of its 
implementation period (13 October 2020) clearly appears as the preferred option. The 
option of not renewing the Protocol would not bring the same benefits.  

Such a non-renewal would deprive the EU of an instrument capable of responding to the 
needs  of  the  various  stakeholders,  and  to  its  own  needs  in  terms  of  strengthening  the 
global  governance  of  the  oceans  in  the  Western  and  Central  Pacific  Ocean  through  the 
WCPFC multilateral framework.   

For Cook Islands the EU intervention adds value in terms of a multiannual certainty of 
budget income, an official platform for sectoral  dialogue and direct  exchanges with the 
EU,  in  terms  of  cooperation  and  a  framework  for  joint  monitoring  and  control  of  EU 
activities.  The  SFPA  contribute  to  the  promotion  of  responsible  fishing  practices,  and 
gives  access  to  a  dedicated  budget  line  (sectoral  support)  for  financial  support  to 
implementation  of  national  fisheries  policy  by  Cook  Islands.  In  particular,  the  sectoral 
support component provides additional multiannual funding not available from national 
budgets or from other development partners. This envelope supports the implementation 
of  the  Ministry  of  Marine  Ressources  strategic  plan  designed  to  achieve  the  defined 
national development goals in relation to the fisheries sector.  

As  far  as  possible,  the  next  Protocol  will  have  to  address  some  shortcomings 
identified  through  the  ex-post  evaluation.  The  most  challenging  part  will  be  to 
establish  a  balance  between  Protocol  fishing  opportunities  and  actual  demand  by  EU 
purse seiners, noting that an increase of EU purse seine fleet in the Western and Central 
Pacific Ocean is a real possibility, given tuna stock conditions in other Oceans and likely 
increased  attractiveness  of  the  area  in  the  event  a  new  Protocol  is  concluded  with 
Kiribati.  The  reference  tonnage  will  be  reviewed,  to  seek  a  better  balance  that  would 
ensure  improved  performance  under  the  next  Protocol  in  terms  of  effectiveness  and 
efficiency.  

Technical clauses of the Protocol could still be slightly modified, but it is of note that 
current  technical  clauses  are  well  accepted  and  complied  with.  The  result  of  the 
evaluation  and  lessons  learned  from  other  similar  interventions  lead  to  the  adoption  of 
recommendations  with  a  view  to  addressing  issues  that  need  to  be  considered  and 
resolved in the future Protocol. 

The  general  objectives  of  an  EU  intervention  will  have  to  ensure  that  i)  resource 
conservation and environmental sustainability is ensured through rational use of marine 
resources  available in Cook  Islands’ EEZ, ii) protection is  provided for  the viability of 
the  EU  fishing  fleet  operating  in  the  Western  and  Central  Pacific  Ocean,  and  iii)  a 
sustainable fisheries sector is developed in Cook Islands along the lines promoted by the 

8 

 
national  development  strategy  and  in  full  compliance  with  Cook  Islands  international 
obligations as both a flag and coastal State.  

The arrangements with regards to financial compensation for access could be reviewed, 
with reference prices potentially reviewed, with provision for their amendment mid-way 
through  a  new  Protocol,  and  with  access  fees  paid  by  vessel  owners  also  potentially 
reviewed, in the light of the recently negotiated agreements and protocols.  

The benefits of the sectoral support in the Cook Islands should be made more visible 
and be more widely communicated to Cook Islands’ civil society.   The Cook Islands is 
fully aware that increased communication will improve acceptability of the EU  – Cook 
Islands SFPA, which is pivotal in the perspective of the renewal of the Protocol. 

To  sum  up,  the  Commission  supports  the  conclusions  of  the  assessment  made  by  the 
contractor. The duration of a future Protocol should be at least four years (like the current 
Protocol). 

9 

 
ANNEX 1: PROCEDURAL INFORMATION 

1.  LEAD DG, DeCIDE PLANNING/CWP REFERENCES 

Responsable DG: DG MARE – Maritime Affairs and Fisheries 

Decide  Planning  reference:  PLAN/2019/5767  -  Evaluation  of  the  protocol  to  the 
Fisheries Partnership Agreement with Cook Islands 

2.  ORGANISATION AND TIMING 

An  inter-service  group  (ISG),  included  DG  MARE,  DG  for  International  Cooperation 
and Development (DEVCO), the Secretariat-General (SG) and European External Action 
Service  (EAAS),  was  established  to  steer  the  preparation  of  this  evaluation.  The 
evaluation was carried out between October 2019 and March 2020.  

The  evaluation  was  also  supported  by  a  study  carried  out  by  an  external  consultant 
between the same time period. 

Tasks 

Signature of the contract  

Kick-off meeting 

Report of the Kick-off meeting 

Submission of the draft final report 

Meeting to discuss draft final report  

Comments to the draft final report 

Time 

01.10.2019 

10.10.2019 

29.10.2019 

09.12.2019 

18.12.2019 

Witten  exchange  with  the  steering 
group 

Submission of the final report  

12.03.2020 

3.  EXCEPTIONS TO THE BETTER REGULATION GUIDELINES 

The  legal  and  procedural  requirements  for  the  preparation  of  the  renewal  of  fisheries 
protocols  lead  to  a  tight  schedule,  which  prevents  the  holding  of  an  open  public 
consultation. Moreover, the impact of SFPA is relatively limited, as they focus on a small 
number of stakeholders. The consultation strategy excludes open public consultations. 

4.  CONSULTATION OF THE RSB (IF APPLICABLE) 

Not applicable. 

5.  EVIDENCE, SOURCES AND QUALITY 

The  evaluation  is  based  on  the  study  of  “Sustainable  Fisheries  Partnership  Agreement 
(SFPA) and protocol with Cook Islands Ex-post and ex-ante evaluation of the protocol to 
the Fisheries Partnership Agreement (FPA) with Cook Islands” that was carried out by a 
consultant.  

Additional  information  sources  for  this  evaluation  were  used  through  scientific  advice 
bilateral/multilateral 
meetings 
reviews, 
10 

Committee 

minutes, 

Joint 

 
 
 
discussions/consultations with  Member States and civil  society organisations, including 
the LDAC.   

Last but not least, the evaluation process and the final evaluation report was subject to a 
quality assessment by the inter-service steering group. 

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ANNEX 2: STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION 

In line with its guidelines and the ‘better regulation toolbox’, the Commission presented 
a strategy for consultation when preparing negotiations for the renewal of FPA protocols. 
The    strategy    involves    determining    the    best    means    of    consulting    relevant  
stakeholders  in the EU and the partner country concerned.   

Objectives 

The aim of the consultation is:   

  to    gather    stakeholders’    views    on    the    implementation    of    the  
previous/ongoing protocol and its possible renewal, including the various options; 
and  

  to  feed  into  the  evaluation  report  (a  Commission  working  document  to  be 
prepared before the opening of negotiations on the basis of an evaluation study by 
an external contractor).   

Approach to consultation  

The main stakeholders concerned with the protocol, are:  

  owners of vessels flying Member States’ flags and benefiting from the protocol; 
representatives or associations of ship-owners benefiting from the protocol;  

  NGOs;  
 
 
 

the Cook Islands authorities;  
representatives of the Member States’ authorities; and 
the private sector and civil society. 

Detailed results of the stakeholder consultation  

These results are presented in Annex 3 of the evaluation study.8 

8   Ex-post  and  ex-ante  evaluation  study  of  the  Protocol  to  the  Agreement  on  a  Sustainable  Fisheries 

Partnership Agreement between the European Union and Cook Islands, March 2020. 

12