15 October 2013: At the seventh session of the Committee on Fisheries Sub-Committee on Aquaculture (COFI AQ), over 50 countries endorsed a Global Aquaculture Advancement Partnership (GAAP) programme to bring together a broad range of public and private sector stakeholders to find sustainable aquaculture solutions.

The COFI AQ meeting took place in St. Petersburg, Russia, from 7-11 October 2013. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), the GAAP provides a response to the challenge that aquaculture currently produces almost 50% of global fish consumption, and needs to expand in order to meet the demands of a growing global population. The GAAP is expected to review constraints to growth in the sector and help to identify governance processes that safeguard aquatic health and conserve biodiversity.

In addition to endorsing the GAAP, COFI AQ considered a tool to evaluate harmonization between public and private aquaculture certification schemes and the global certification guidelines of the FAO.

The GAAP and the evaluation framework will be sent to the Committee on Fisheries, for consideration at its next session in June 2014. [COFI Sub-Committee on Aquaculture] [FAO Press Release]