Home / Laws and Charters / International Laws and Charters / The Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Convention (NAFO)

The Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Convention (NAFO)

NAFO is an intergovernmental fisheries science and management body. NAFO was founded in 1979 as a successor to ICNAF (International Commission of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries) (1949-1978). NAFO”s overall objective is to contribute through consultation and cooperation to the optimum utilization, rational management and conservation of the fishery resources of the Convention Area.

The Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Convention (NAFO)

Introduction

The Convention on Future Multilateral Cooperation in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries, signed on 24 October 1978 in Ottawa, came into force on 1 January 1979 following the deposit with the Government of Canada the instruments of ratification, acceptance and approval by seven signatories: Canada, Cuba, the European Economic Community (EEC), German Democratic Republic (GDR), Iceland, Norway, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). This Convention, establishing the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO), replaced the 1949 International Convention for the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries and the International Commission for the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries (ICNAF). The prime objective of NAFO has been to contribute through consultation and cooperation to the optimum utilization, rational management and conservation of the fishery resources of the
Convention Area. NAFO promotes contemporary ideas for international collaboration in the high seas based on the scientific research fundamentals.

The constituent bodies of NAFO are: the General Council, Scientific Council, Fisheries Commission, and the Secretariat, which specific functions are set out in the Convention and the Rules of Procedure.

During 1979–96 the Convention was amended three times by modifications of its Annex III –
boundaries between Subareas 0–1, 4–5 and 3 of the Convention Area were changed on 1 January 1980, on 9 October 1987, and 13 September 1996, respectively.

Check Also

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is …