3 Core Elements Could Help Improve Historic Fishing Deal

In March, world leaders convened at the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé, Cameroon, where they reaffirmed their commitment to tackle issues previously unaddressed in a critical deal designed to curb harmful fisheries subsidies, with a view to recommend related provisions by the next conference in 2028.

The landmark WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies – adopted in 2022 – entered into force in September 2025, after two-thirds of the organization’s membership ratified it. This deal is the first of its kind: a global, legally binding framework to limit the $22 billion that governments provide each year – largely to industrial fleets – that artificially lower fuel and gear costs, among other expenses, and promote unsustainable fishing. Under this newly effective agreement, world governments bound to the deal can advance on their promise to halt any payments that enable illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, fishing of overfished stocks and fishing of unmanaged stocks on the high seas.

When the deal was adopted, trade ministers committed to continuing negotiations and recommending additional rules on outstanding issues. And despite WTO members having come close to consensus at the organization’s 13th Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in February 2024, members have not yet been able to bridge differing views on several issues including the number and extent of flexibilities – and exceptions – to these rules.

However, at the conference in Yaoundé, WTO ministers released a decision, providing direction for how members should progress towards finalizing additional provisions that limit subsidies contributing to “overfishing and overcapacity,” which refers to a fleet’s ability to harvest more fish than is sustainable. Following this decision, WTO members must build momentum as they work to complete these new rules under the leadership of Guyana’s Ambassador Leslie Ramsammy, who was appointed last year as the new chair to lead these negotiations.

Following are three principles that the new rules should reflect to ensure that a strengthened deal can further help countries across the globe rebuild overfished stocks, protect coastal communities’ livelihoods and bolster food security.

Aligning New Rules With Global Sustainability Goals

The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a road map for how the world could protect future generations and the planet. SDG 14 is a global goal to conserve and sustainably use the ocean and its resources. A key SDG 14 target also urges the WTO to end remaining types of destructive subsidies, including those that incentivize overfishing and the overcapacity of fishing fleets, as soon as possible. This target requires immediate attention, considering the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization reported nearly 38% of fish stocks worldwide were exploited beyond sustainable levels in 2021, the most recent year for which reliable data is available.

To help meet this target and deliver lasting sustainability benefits, the WTO must finalize additional rules to include strong prohibitions on subsidy types that particularly contribute to overfishing and overcapacity – such as subsidies for vessel construction, fuel and bait purchases, fishing equipment acquisition and maintenance, and market price support for any fish caught.

Addressing Inequities in Global Fishing Subsidies

Although the 2022 agreement addresses the most alarming scenarios of subsidized fishing, the additional rules under negotiation could go a lot further to tackle some of the root causes that drive overfishing, while also addressing global inequities.

Subsidies can still hurt fish populations even in situations where fishing is legal and stocks are yet to be determined as “overfished.” Experts estimate that over 80% of fisheries subsidies worldwide are granted to large-scale industrial fleets, while only 19% are given to small-scale fisheries – a sector that accounts for nearly half of the global catch and supports the livelihoods of 500 million people. Industrial vessels often use these payments to travel far distances beyond their own territories and stay on the water longer, catching more fish than they would without such financial support.

To address this issue, the new rules must end subsidies to distant-water fishing fleets, with no exemptions or flexibilities. And since developing countries have been left to compete against these well-funded foreign fleets, the WTO should also consider any special and differential treatment that allows these nations the flexibility necessary to help them implement the deal and protect their small-scale fishing fleets – all while ensuring they do not undermine sustainability objectives.

Rather than continuing to provide support for detrimental fishing practices, these new rules could serve as an opportunity for countries to level the playing field and consider how they can redirect these funds towards the public good.

Building the Capacity Needed to Achieve Desired Outcomes

Once the new rules are adopted, WTO members must be able to implement them. The 2022 agreement lays out clear reporting requirements and timelines for when WTO members should submit specific information, to better understand where and how fisheries subsidies are being spent worldwide. The Committee on Fisheries Subsidies, established by the agreement, is the subsidiary body responsible for reviewing these submissions and proposing recommendations to improve efficiency and implementation over time. Additionally, the deal created a “fish fund,” as a resource, to help developing and least-developed members access the technical assistance they may need to meet these obligations.

As negotiations continue, it is critical that members ensure the inclusion of measures that enable governments to report any newly required information under additional rules – and build the capacity to do so – without undermining the agreement’s vision for protecting fish stocks and ocean health.

The Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies is the first multilateral deal reached by the WTO that links trade and the environment – and the organization’s second agreement since it was established in 1995. More than two decades in the making, this deal marks a turning point for the ocean. Yet, WTO members must finish the job by negotiating – and soon securing – further rules that address the most harmful effects of fisheries subsidies.

Megan Jungwiwattanaporn is an officer on The Pew Charitable Trusts’ conservation support team and Grace Evans is a senior associate with Pew’s ocean governance project.