The CFCA has adopted its sixth work programme for 2012, the first one within the mandate of his new Executive Director and has elected a new Chairman. Moreover, the budget adopted in the meeting for 2012 is of €9,31million, subject to the definitive adoption of the EU Budget for 2012 by the Budgetary Authority in the coming weeks.
Election of Chairman
Jörgen Holmquist, an economist from Sweden, has been elected the new Chairman of CFCA Administrative Board. After top level positions within the Swedish national administration, he has been Director General of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs and Director General of Internal Market and Services of the European Commission.
2012 Work Programme
In 2012, the Agency will focus on its core business and the potential of Member States to apply the EU fisheries control rules in a uniform and effective manner. Moreover, it will contribute to a level playing field by implementing regional joint deployment plans based on specific and control and inspection programmes. All in all, these tasks are essential so as to promote sustainable exploitation of marine living resources and Integrated Maritime Policy.
The Agency will carry on doing the coordination work it has been doing in important fisheries such as cod in the Baltic Sea and in the North Sea and Western Waters; bluefin tuna in the Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic, Pelagic in Western Waters and NAFO and NEAFC Regulatory Area. In addition, it will progressively extend this cooperation to regional joint deployment plans based on multispecies, and it will continue to support the fight against IUU fishing.
In 2012, the Agency will assist the Commission and Member States in the cooperation with third countries within the JDP areas. In addition, the JDP for pelagic fisheries in Western Waters of the North East Atlantic will continue. It will be the first one carried out in a continuous and permanent manner and applied to a multispecies fishery and will serve as a first experience on the concept of regional joint deployment plans based on multispecies. This approach may also offer synergies for saving on public expenditures of Member States concerned by several Member States.
In helping to build the control and inspection capacities of Member States, the Agency will facilitate the elaboration of core curricula for training of national fisheries inspectors, promote the exchange of best practices and develop harmonised standards of inspection. It will also foster Integrated Maritime Surveillance in cooperation with the European Commission, Member States and other EU agencies. Indeed, Maritime Surveillance data and data management systems developed for the Agency for its operational requirements will contribute to improve synergies, efficiency and cost effectiveness.
“Now that the 2012 work programme of the Agency has been adopted by the Board, it is my commitment to ensure its effective execution. My team and I will work hard in the contribution that the Agency makes to fair competition and ultimately to a sustainable exploitation of marine resources,” said Pascal Savouret, CFCA Executive Director.
