SEAFDEC Newsletter Vol.43 No.3

Abstract

For the third quarter of 2020, SEAFDEC organized several events through the online platform, particularly the webinar “Information-sharing of the Impact of COVID-19 on Fisheries and Aquaculture in Southeast Asia” where discussion and assessment were made on the impacts of COVID-19 on the fisheries and aquaculture sector of Southeast Asia. Another significant regional event of SEAFDEC was the “Webinar on Fisheries Subsidies” which was aimed at coming up with a set of recommendations and ASEAN common position on fisheries subsidies.

Furthermore, SEAFDEC continued to conduct several training courses including the “Online Training on the Use of Electronic ASEAN Catch Documentation Systems (eACDS) Application” to build the capacity of the participants to become trainers to fishers and relevant stakeholders in using the application. In another development, the “Online Regional Technical Meeting on Reducing Negative Impact to Ecosystem, Optimizing Energy and Fuel Consumption” was also organized by TD to discuss the technological improvements and assess the needs to pave the way for the planning and implementation of the activities under the Project “Responsible Fishing Technology and Practices.”

Other regional meetings and consultations organized by SEAFDEC during this quarter include the Teleseminar on Way Forward for Combating IUU Fishing in Southeast Asia; Teleworkshop on Development and Improvement of Regional Tools for Combating IUU Fishing in Southeast Asia; Regional Consultation Teleworkshop on the Utilization of Fisheries Geographic Information System (FGIS) and Remote Sensing (RS); Sub-regional Consultation Teleworkshop on Developing a Plan of Activity for Transboundary Fisheries Resources; and Regional Consultation Workshop on Developing a Plan of Activities for Resource Enhancement in Southeast Asian Region.

Moreover, TD took part in the “Regional Workshop on Assessing the Needs of the AMSs in Implementation the FAO Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication to Support Access to Markets” to identify the key issues and needs of the AMSs in the implementation of the SSF Guidelines, and came up with recommendations for future collaboration.

Furthermore, SEAFDEC welcomed Mr. Koichi Honda on 31 August 2020 as the new SEAFDEC Deputy Secretary- General and Deputy Chief of the Training Department, succeeding Mr. Akito Sato. Also, MFRDMD had its new management team starting October 2020, namely: Dr. Ahmad bin Ali as the new MFRDMD Department Chief and Ms. Mazalina binti Ali as the new Special Departmental Coordinator.