Exploring the Possible Impacts of WTO Rules on Fisheries Subsidies: The Case of the Southern Longline Tuna Fishery in the Western and Central Pacific

The document assesses how WTO subsidy disciplines regarding illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, overfished stocks, and overcapacity would affect the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) southern longline (SLL) fishery. It focuses on six fleets (China, Chinese Taipei, Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and French Polynesia) and finds that vessels from China and Chinese Taipei are most likely to be impacted by prohibitions on operating cost subsidies, as their revenues may not cover costs without financial assistance. While target stocks like South Pacific albacore are healthy, the fishery faces economic overfishing characterized by falling catch per unit effort (CPUE). The report suggests that while subsidy rules could reduce overall effort and potentially improve profitability for remaining vessels, they may also create short-term revenue losses for Pacific Island countries (PICs) and disadvantage their domestic fleets due to higher local fuel costs.

• Vessels from China and Chinese Taipei over 24 metres appear to have catch revenues that do not cover their operating costs, suggesting they rely on financial assistance to continue fishing.
• The SLL fishery is experiencing economic overfishing, where falling catch per unit effort (CPUE) is offset by subsidies—likely for fuel—which maintain an uneconomically high level of fishing effort.
• Proposed WTO subsidy prohibitions targeting IUU fishing would likely have limited impact because the WCPFC's process for listing IUU vessels results in very few listings, with only three vessels currently listed.
• Because target stocks are healthy, a subsidy rule prohibiting subsidies only for overfished target stocks would have little effect; however, a rule covering bycatch or unassessed stocks would apply to all WCPO tuna fisheries due to the incidental catch of oceanic whitetip sharks.
• Prohibiting subsidies for operating costs or fishing in waters beyond national jurisdiction could reduce overall effort, particularly for Chinese and Chinese Taipei fleets, but may increase the cost disadvantage for Pacific Island country (PIC) vessels due to higher local fuel costs.
• While new WTO rules might cause short-term losses in processing volumes and fee revenues for PICs, removing excess effort could improve the profitability of remaining vessels and allow PICs to increase access fees and develop domestic industries.

APA

Sen, S., & Cartwright, I. (2019). Exploring the Possible Impacts of WTO Rules on Fisheries Subsidies: The Case of the Southern Longline Tuna Fishery in the Western and Central Pacific. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/fisheries-subsidies-tuna-pacific-summary-en.pdf

Chicago

Sen, Sevaly, and Ian Cartwright. Exploring the Possible Impacts of WTO Rules on Fisheries Subsidies: The Case of the Southern Longline Tuna Fishery in the Western and Central Pacific. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2019. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/fisheries-subsidies-tuna-pacific-summary-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sen |first1=Sevaly |last2=Cartwright |first2=Ian |title=Exploring the Possible Impacts of WTO Rules on Fisheries Subsidies: The Case of the Southern Longline Tuna Fishery in the Western and Central Pacific |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=December 2019 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/fisheries-subsidies-tuna-pacific-summary-en.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sen2019exploring, author = {Sen, Sevaly and Cartwright, Ian}, title = {{Exploring the Possible Impacts of WTO Rules on Fisheries Subsidies: The Case of the Southern Longline Tuna Fishery in the Western and Central Pacific}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2019}, month = dec, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/fisheries-subsidies-tuna-pacific-summary-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }