90% of fish stocks are used up – fisheries subsidies must stop emptying the ocean

The author asserts that nearly 90% of marine fish stocks are fully exploited, overexploited, or depleted, largely driven by harmful fisheries subsidies totaling over $20 billion annually. These subsidies disproportionately benefit large fleets while harming small-scale fisheries and coastal livelihoods, particularly in developing countries. The text calls for the World Trade Organization (WTO) to finalize an agreement to eliminate these subsidies, noting that doing so would free up government resources for sustainable development and climate action.

• Approximately 90% of the world's marine fish stocks are currently fully exploited, overexploited, or depleted, with harmful fisheries subsidies playing a significant role in this decline.
• Harmful fisheries subsidies are estimated to exceed $20 billion per year and primarily benefit large-scale operations; nearly 85% of these subsidies go to large fleets, despite small-scale fisheries employing 90% of all fishermen.
• The fisheries sector is a critical economic driver for developing countries, where 97% of fishermen reside and 54% of the global fish trade originates.
• Sustainable Development Goal 14 requires WTO members to prohibit subsidies contributing to overcapacity and overfishing and eliminate those supporting illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing by 2020.

APA

Thomson, P. (2018). 90% of fish stocks are used up – fisheries subsidies must stop emptying the ocean. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/fish-stocks-are-used-up-fisheries-subsidies-must-stop/

Chicago

Thomson, Peter. 90% of fish stocks are used up – fisheries subsidies must stop emptying the ocean. World Economic Forum, 2018. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/fish-stocks-are-used-up-fisheries-subsidies-must-stop/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Thomson |first1=Peter |title=90% of fish stocks are used up – fisheries subsidies must stop emptying the ocean |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=13 July 2018 |url=https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/fish-stocks-are-used-up-fisheries-subsidies-must-stop/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{thomson2018fish, author = {Thomson, Peter}, title = {{90\% of fish stocks are used up – fisheries subsidies must stop emptying the ocean}}, publisher = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2018}, month = jul, url = {https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/fish-stocks-are-used-up-fisheries-subsidies-must-stop/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }