On 15 September 2025, the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies entered into force – three years after its adoption in 2022. The Agreement responds to SDG target 14.6 aimed at, by 2020: prohibiting fisheries subsidies which contribute to overcapacity and overfishing; eliminating subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing; and refraining from introducing new subsidies.

The target also stipulates that “recognizing that appropriate and effective special and differential treatment for developing and least developed countries should be an integral part of the World Trade Organization fisheries subsidies negotiation.”

The Fisheries Subsidies Agreement, which entered into force once two-thirds of members had deposited their “instruments of acceptance” with the WTO, includes a set of rules prohibiting subsidies to IUU fishing, to the fishing of overfished stocks, and to fishing on the high seas outside the control of regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs). The instruments of acceptance of the Agreement from Brazil, Kenya, Viet Nam, and Tonga, received by WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on 15 September, brought the number of such instruments over the two-thirds threshold.

In her remarks to the WTO membership, Okonjo-Iweala underscored that the Agreement “sends a powerful signal that WTO members can work together in a spirit of cooperation and shared responsibility to deliver solutions to global challenges.” She said its entry into force serves as “a reminder that many of the biggest challenges we face are more effectively addressed at the multilateral level,” through “a multilateralism that delivers.”

Okonjo-Iweala encouraged all remaining members to deposit their instruments of acceptance “without delay” – a call echoed by several WTO members. Members welcomed the Agreement as “a major milestone for the WTO, emphasizing that it confirms their commitment to the multilateral trading system and to a more sustainable planet,” a WTO news release notes. 

The WTO Fisheries Funding Mechanism Trust Fund – a voluntary funding mechanism established to assist developing and least developed country (LDC) members that have accepted the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and deposited their instruments of ratification – aims to support these members in implementing the Agreement. Seventeen members have pledged over USD 18 million to the Fish Fund, according to the WTO. Requests for project grants to implement the agreement under the first call for proposals are due by 9 October.

“To oversee implementation of the Agreement, a Committee on Fisheries Subsidies will be established to maintain regular dialogue on members’ fishing practices and subsidies and to increase transparency on governments’ practices,” the news release states.

Negotiations are ongoing on additional provisions that would further enhance the disciplines of the Agreement, as agreed at the WTO’s Twelfth Ministerial Conference (MC12) in June 2022. [WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on Adoption of WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies]