International and Regional Fisheries Management Organizations

Atlantic Ocean Regional Fisheries Management Organizations

International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas

• ICCAT is an inter-governmental fishery organization responsible for the conservation of tunas and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent seas. The Commission is responsible for providing internationally coordinated research on the condition of these species and developing regulations for their sustainable management.

 Learn about the ICCAT Advisory Committee

North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization

• NASCO is an international organization whose objective is to conserve, restore, enhance, and rationally manage Atlantic salmon through international cooperation, taking into account the best available scientific information.

Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization

• NAFO is an intergovernmental fisheries science and management body responsible for the management of most resources in the region, salmon, tunas/marlins, whales, and sedentary species.  NAFO’s objective is to ensure the long term conservation and sustainable use of the fishery resources in the Convention Area and to safeguard the marine ecosystems in which these resources are found.

Western Central Atlantic Fisheries Commission

• The general objective of the WECAFC is to promote the effective conservation, management, and development of the living marine resources of the area of competence of the Commission, in accordance with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, and address common problems of fisheries management and development faced by members of the Commission.

Indian Ocean Intergovernmental Organizations

Indian Ocean Tuna Commission

• IOTC is a regional fisheries management organization mandated to manage tuna and tuna-like species in the Indian Ocean and adjacent seas.  Its objective is to promote cooperation among its members by ensuring, through appropriate management, the conservation and optimum utilization of stocks and encouraging sustainable development of fisheries based on such stocks. IOTC has authority over tuna and tuna-like species, with a main focus on albacore, bigeye, and yellowfin tunas.  

Indian Ocean South East Asian Marine Turtle Memorandum of Understanding

• IOSEA is an intergovernmental agreement that aims to protect, conserve, replenish, and recover marine turtles and their habitats of the Indian Ocean and South-East Asian region, working in partnership with other relevant nations and organizations.

Pacific Ocean Regional Fisheries Management Organizations

Agreement on the International Dolphin Conservation Program

• AIDCP is a legally binding agreement for dolphin conservation and ecosystem management in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean.  The objectives of the Agreement are to reduce incidental dolphin mortalities in the tuna purse-seine fishery through the setting of annual limits, to seek alternative means of capturing large yellowfin tunas not in association with dolphins, and to ensure the long-term sustainability of tuna stocks and marine resources in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean.  

Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission

• IATTC is an international commission responsible for the conservation and management of tuna and other marine resources in the eastern Pacific Ocean.  The overall objective of this commission is to ensure the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the fish stocks covered by the Convention, in accordance with the relevant rules of international law.

North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission

• NPAFC was established under the Convention of Anadromous Stocks in the North Pacific Ocean.  The NPAFC serves as a forum for promoting the conservation of anadromous stocks and ecologically related species—including marine mammals, sea birds, and non-anadromous fish in the high seas area of the North Pacific Ocean. 

Convention on the Conservation and Management of Pollock Resources in the Central Bering Sea

• The Pollock Convention is an intergovernmental agreement aimed at establishing an international regime for conservation, management, and optimum utilization of pollock resources in the Bering Sea.  

Pacific Salmon Commission

• PSC was created under a treaty between the United States and Canada that aims to establish and implement fishery management regulations for the international conservation and harvest of North Pacific salmon stocks.  The Commission provides regulatory advice and recommendations for sustainable management of Pacific salmon stocks.

Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission

• WCPFC provides a forum for management, long-term conservation and sustainable use of highly migratory fish stocks, such as tunas, billfish, and marlin, in the western and central Pacific Ocean.

International Pacific Halibut Commission

• IPHC is an international fisheries organization responsible for the management of Pacific halibut stocks within the Pacific waters of its member states (the United States and Canada).  It was founded in 1923 by an international treaty to conserve, manage, and rebuild the halibut stocks in the Convention Area to levels that would achieve and maintain the maximum sustainable yield from the fishery.  

Southern Ocean Intergovernmental Organizations

Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources

• CCAMLR was established by international convention in 1982 with the objective of conserving Antarctic marine life. This was in response to increasing commercial interest in Antarctic krill resources, a keystone component of the Antarctic ecosystem.  

Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals

• CCAS aims to promote and achieve the protection, scientific study, and rational use of Antarctic seals, and to maintain a satisfactory balance within the ecological system of Antarctica.