C 214/158
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
16.6.2023
Thursday 19 January 2023
BE.
whereas work by women provides added value in the artisanal fisheries sector;
BF.
whereas the SSF sector finds itself increasingly in competition with other blue economy activities, as well as with renewable energy interests that affect many activities along the coast, in beaches or harbour areas, thus potentially taking over areas previously used almost exclusively by SSF, resulting in displacement and ‘sea and coastal grabbing’;
BG. whereas gentrification processes occurring in many developing coastal areas risk making it increasingly unaffordable for small-scale fishers to live in coastal areas, pushing them far away from their place of work and thus rendering their activity even more difficult and inconvenient;
BH. whereas the increased focus on conservation promoted by the EU has a particular impact on small-scale fishing, an example of which is the implementation of marine protected areas (MPAs) and MPA networks, which affect small-scale fishing by restricting the associated activities and limiting mobility; whereas the impact on this segment is rarely considered in the design of these policies, an aspect that is aggravated by the fact that actors from the segment are not adequately involved in these processes (30);
BI.
whereas the fishing sector in general and small-scale fishing in particular are under-represented when defining fisheries management policies and policies on the use of maritime space;
BJ.
whereas there are various types of fishery organisations, with different levels of membership representing small-scale fishing: from producer organisations to fishers’ associations, shipowners’ associations and cooperatives, among others; whereas many small shipowners are not affiliated to any organisations; whereas professionals in the fishing industry are represented in fisheries trade unions; whereas it should be up to the sector to determine how it organises itself;
BK. whereas the disaggregation of the relevant data is inadequate, which makes access to detailed information difficult, particularly where small-scale fishing is concerned, and hampers analysis, in particular in terms of breaking down undertakings, shipowners, fishing professionals, vessels and gear, working conditions, age and gender, among other things;
Strengthening small-scale fisheries along the value chain, promoting higher fisheries incomes and providing income diversification opportunities
1.
Takes the view that the future of small-scale, coastal and artisanal fishing depends not only on long-term and sustainable measures, but also on immediate, meaningful and effective measures to increase fishers’ profit margins also through higher quota allocations in line with scientific advice; considers it necessary to enhance the organisational and commercial capacities of the sector and the profession’s attractiveness, to provide training and targeted support for young people and to improve operating conditions, in particular for the inclusion of women on board vessels and in the sector more generally, and to strengthen its position in the supply chain; calls on the Commission, therefore, working in close cooperation with the Member States, to establish and implement support mechanisms, within the EMFAF framework, for small-scale, artisanal and coastal fisheries that make it possible to tackle the specific problems in this part of the sector;
2.
Believes that the future of small-scale fishing requires that its specific nature be recognised in the CFP and that the present instruments be adapted in order to meet the needs of this sector;
3.
Stresses the need for a common, broader and more appropriate definition of small-scale, artisanal and coastal fisheries; stresses that such a definition should be pragmatic, measureable and clear; also emphasises that the definition should result from an appropriate assessment, taking into account the characteristics and criteria of the SSF segment other than vessel length, in order to bring the EU definition of SSF into line with the reality of the segment, as is already the case with the existing definitions included within certain international conventions such as the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) or the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM);
(30)
See p. 8 of Small-Scale Fisheries in Europe: Status, Resilience and Governance.