India to reiterate support for fishing interests of less-developed countries at WTO in Feb 2024

India is set to reiterate its support for the fishing interests of less-developed countries at the upcoming 13th Ministerial Conference (MC) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), scheduled from February 26th to 29th, 2024, in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Union Minister for Animal Husbandry, Dairying, and Fisheries, Purshottam Rupala, told CNBC-TV18 that India is aware of its larger global responsibilities.

Coming on the heels of the WTO MC-12 in June 2022, where agreements were reached to combat unreported and unregulated fishing globally and implement strict controls on overfished areas for the restoration of fish stocks, India aims to reiterate its commitment. During MC-12, it was also decided that no subsidies would be provided for fishing in areas beyond Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) or Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs).

In July 2022, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry informed Parliament that the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, established at the WTO Ministerial meeting, would prohibit subsidies for Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and overfished stocks. Developing and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) were granted a two-year transition period from the agreement's entry into force.