The Government of Seychelles committed today at the Our Ocean Conference 2018 in Bali to host the International Secretariat of the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI), starting April 2019.

The 5th Our Ocean Conference, hosted by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, brought together more than 5,000 participants from countries across the globe, including governments, commercial sectors, financing entities, scientific communities, civil society organizations, and young leaders.

The Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) is a global multi-stakeholder initiative which increases transparency and participation for a more sustainable management of marine fisheries. Through its global standard, the FiTI sets clear requirements of what is expected from countries regarding transparency on the management of the marine fisheries sector and the activities of fishers and fishing companies.

“Transparency is a prerequisite for informed public debates on fisheries policies and for achieving meaningful participation in fisheries decision-making. Seychelles has been sincerely committed to the FiTI from its beginning, seeing it as essential for our work in advancing a sustainable blue economy. Like Seychelles, a number of countries around the world have already started to implement the FiTI. But in order to achieve a global level playing field of transparency, the FiTI needs a permanent headquarter. We are therefore proud to be the new home of its international secretariat. My government is strongly convinced that the FiTI and its underlying multi-stakeholder paradigm will be of great value for governments all around the world, but also the fishing industry, artisanal fishers, civil society and investors”, said Vincent Meriton, Vice President of the Republic of Seychelles.

The Vice President encouraged other countries to join the FiTI and called upon the international donor community to support the initiative.

During his intervention, Vice President Meriton also highlighted the successful issue of the world’s first sovereign blue bond to support sustainable marine and fisheries projects. He further emphasised that public and private financial resources are crucial in supporting the blue economy, but weak governance, and in particular the lack of transparency, is a key barrier in unlocking financial resources. The Fisheries Transparency Initiative can therefore not only support making fisheries management more inclusive and sustainable, but also improve a country’s investment climate.

The FiTI is currently hosted by the HUMBOLDT-VIADRINA Governance Platform, a not-for-profit organization in Berlin/Germany. The Government of the Seychelles is working with the FiTI International Secretariat to support the transition from Berlin to Victoria.