Signing the agreement between WWF and Sernapesca. (Photo: Sernapesca)
CHILEThursday, January 15, 2015, 01:30 (GMT + 9)
The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) have signed an agreement to conserve and promote sustainable use of fisheries resources.
This initiative is designed to favour the recovery of Chilean fisheries, especially those that are overexploited and undergoing collapse situation.
Sernapesca national director, Jose Miguel Burgos, and the director of WWF Chile, Ricardo Bosshard, participated in the signing.
Under this agreement, both agencies commit to developing strategies that encourage citizen participation in the sustainability of fishing activities and the promotion of good practices in aquaculture, Sernapesca reported in a statement.
"This process has been very interesting because we have realized that we have many common goals, and this agreement summarizes this joint vision," Bosshard said.
"We are very interested in the final consumer awareness about the need to protect our fishing heritage, and the importance of buying legal fish, sustainably caught," he added.
He also highlighted Sernapesca approach to citizenship through campaigns such as the hake ban in 2014.
The director of WWF Chile expressed the NGO’s satisfaction for the change shown by Sernapesca, since before this organism was "very concerned about control" and now it is turning more towards the consumer.
Meanwhile, Burgos stressed that a "cultural change" is required so that those involved in the fishing activity may choose more sustainable practices in order to reduce its illegality.
"The control of Sernapesca and other institutions linked to the sector is not enough, it is also essential the commitment of citizens to exercise responsible consumption of products, and through their purchase decision, discourage illegal fishing, for example," he said.
Finally, the director of Sernapesca announced that this year they would work on developing a standard for sustainable fisheries, allowing consumers to distinguish the places (supermarkets, markets, restaurants, etc.) that sell products fished or farmed sustainably and according to the rules.