Fisheries and aquaculture products are some of the most traded food commodities globally, and the global seafood demand is expected to nearly double by 2050. Meanwhile, the depletion of fishery resources is accelerating in the world’s oceans due to factors such as illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and climate change. Improving working conditions is also a significant issue that the global fisheries industry is facing.

There is an urgent need to build sustainable food systems in the Asian region, which is both a key producer and consumer of seafood. In particular, establishing equitable, sustainable, and accountable seafood supply chains through robust traceability and transparency systems is crucial. The growing seafood consumption and the scale of seafood business in the region should not contribute to exacerbating global challenges, but rather create incentives for overcoming these challenges and promoting equity, sustainability, and accountability.

This session will be the first public opportunity for the Asian-based civil society organizations, which believe that accelerating intergovernmental collaboration and enhancing private sector collaboration are essential, to gather and discuss the design of a collaboration platform that best fits the regional business and political environment.