Switzerland becomes first state to ratify WTO fisheries deal
Switzerland has become the first country to ratify a World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement to cut harmful fisheries subsidies.
Economics minister Guy Parmelin deposited Switzerland’s instrument of acceptance with WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Friday, according to a government press releaseExternal link. “Switzerland’s swift ratification will help the agreement to soon unfold its positive effects,” it says.
Negotiations on fisheries subsidies were concluded on June 17, 2022, at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference. The agreement will enter into force once two-thirds of the organisation’s 164 members have ratified it.
The issue of fisheries subsidies has divided countries for more than two decades, and the agreement is seen as a major step forward for the sustainable use of marine resources. It prohibits subsidies for illegal, unreported and unregulated marine wild capture fishing, as well as for fishing on overfished stocks and for fishing on the unregulated high seas.
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