10/10/2016 - Crimes that take place in the fisheries sector cause substantial losses to the global economy, with illegal fishing alone estimated to cost $23 billion annually. This figure does not  include the cost of  associated criminality and fraud, or the human misery caused by human trafficking and drug smuggling on fishing boats. These crimes too often slip through the net of international, regional and national-level enforcement.

 

To develop a comprehensive global framework to fight these crimes, the OECD, the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) will bring together 100+ participants from around the world for a conference in Paris on 13 October. Participants will include representatives from the organisers, as well as from Interpol, the World Wildlife Fund and other organisations involved in the fight against fisheries crime.

 

Topics to be discussed include:

• The economic cost of fisheries crimes;
• Tax evasion, bribery and other corrupt practices that facilitate these crimes;
• Country experiences, including those from Indonesia, Korea, Norway and Spain;
• Case studies of effective law enforcement; and
• How to improve global co-operation in combatting fish crimes

 

The conference will be open to media. Representatives of the organising institutions will be available for interview. To register, journalists should contact Lawrence Speer in the OECD’s Media Division (+ 33 1 4524 7970).

 

Speakers will include: Eric Hylton, Chair, OECD Task Force on Tax Crime and Other Crimes; Audun Lem, Deputy Director Policy & Resources, FAO Fisheries Committee; and Jorge Eduardo Rios, Chief, Global Programme for Combating Wildlife and Forest Crime, UNODC.

 

Further details, including the full agenda and schedule for the day, background briefing, and information on conference registration, are available here.

 

For further information, journalists may contact the OECD Media Division (+33 1 4524 9700).

 

Twitter hashtag: #fightfishcrime