The Maldives co-hosted a high-level side-event at the sidelines of the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly

The Maldives co-hosted a high-level side-event entitled “Securing a Future for the Oceans: Leveraging Sustainable Fisheries and the Conservation of Marine Resources” with Palau, Norway and FAO at the sidelines of the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly this afternoon.

The side event served as an important platform to engage in dialogue to demonstrate how sustainable fisheries can be economically viable and be in harmony with the conservation of marine resources, and generate policy recommendations to realize the outcomes of the Oceans Conference and SDG 14 in general.

The Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture of the Maldives Dr. Mohamed Shainee moderated the Side-event. Minister Shainee also delivered a keynote speech at the event. In his statement, Minister Shainee stressed the importance of bringing together like-minded stakeholders on this issue to reflect on the challenges and promote healthy oceans.

The Minister cited key policies adopted by the Government of Maldives to promote sustainable fishing methods and the conservation of marine resource, including banning of all forms of net fishing, and a commitment to sustain the one-by-one fishing methods. The Minister stressed that one-by-one fishing methods, as used in the Maldives, are crucial for sustaining livelihoods of artisanal fishers in the smaller islands of the Maldives.

The event also explored the way forward in propagating the best methodologies through closer collaboration between Governments, Regional Fisheries Bodies, cooperatives and fishing communities, utilizing organizations such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), with the objective of conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in a global context and to foster political will.