October 15, 2024 — The World Trade Organization is once again pushing to get approval of a fishery subsidies draft agreement in advance of its December general council meeting, according to sources at the organization’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
The WTO has been trying to expand on its smaller 2022 deal by adding clauses that further limit subsidies leading to overcapacity and overfishing in global fishing fleets. A draft text circulated in July allowed for carve-outs and phase-in periods for poorer countries without distant-water fleets.