Day: November 3, 2022

Illegal fishing, overfishing and climate change contribute to high death rates in one of world’s most dangerous professions

WASHINGTON, Nov. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — More than 100,000 fishing-related deaths occur each year, a new study finds. Nearly 300 fishers die each day—a much higher estimate than all previous assessments—according to research from the FISH Safety Foundation (FSF) commissioned by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

The significant death toll disproportionately affects low-income fishers—including children forced into labor—and is predominantly driven by dangerous working conditions and unsafe vessels.

The FSF identified several factors responsible for fisher mortality, including poverty; geopolitical conflict; overfishing; illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing; and climate change. IUU is a significant driver, particularly as the demand for fish protein increases globally. Industrial illegal operators cut corners and ignore safety rules while contributing to the overexploitation of highly profitable catch. This in turn drives what has been identified as “IUU by necessity,” in which small-scale, artisanal fishers are driven to break rules or take part in unregulated, dangerous activities as it becomes more difficult to find fish. These conditions are exacerbated by climate change and the changing distribution of fish stocks.

“While fishing can be inherently risky, the harsh reality is that many of these deaths were and are avoidable. With 3 billion people reliant on seafood and the demand expected to rise, stronger policies are urgently needed to keep fishers safe, including ones that address the true drivers of these deaths,” said Peter Horn, a project director with Pew’s international fisheries project, which is focused on ending and preventing illegal fishing.

Eric Holliday, chief executive of FSF, said, “It has been widely speculated that fisher mortality estimates have undercounted and hidden the danger of fishing. Our analysis is the first of its kind and conclusively shows that a lack of transparency in the fishing industry endangers lives by obscuring the full picture of what occurs on vessels or at fishing grounds, making it difficult for governments to set effective policies to improve safety. While we may never be able to pinpoint an exact number of fisher deaths, this should serve as a wake-up call to governments, telling them that in order to save lives, urgent action—informed by better reporting and sharing of mortality data—is needed.”

By reviewing publicly available data and by cross-referencing it with investigative journalism and news articles, social media, and private communications with government officials and others, the study authors were able to provide the most complete picture to date of the number of fishing-related fatalities worldwide.

But even with all these available tools, data gaps remain, and the total number is nearly impossible to quantify. Insufficient and inaccurate data has made it difficult for decision makers to implement necessary policy changes that ensure the safety of industrial and subsistence fishers at international, state and local levels.

Based on the study results, Pew urges action on multiple fronts. Domestically, more needs to be done to implement fisher safety measures and address key drivers. Given the disproportionate levels of fatality in low-income communities, financial support and capacity building are urgently needed. Internationally, improved data collection, transparency and information-sharing efforts will help governing bodies better understand the problems fishers face, more accurately quantify additional risks presented by IUU fishing and adopt policies for stronger vessel safety measures.

There are also existing regulatory frameworks available that are designed to stop illegal fishing and protect fishers. Specifically, countries should ratify and implement the Cape Town Agreement, adopted by the International Maritime Organization in 2012, which sets safety standards for the construction and design of fishing vessels; implement the FAO Agreement on Port State Measures, which works to prevent illegally caught fish from entering the seafood supply chain; and continue implementation of the 2007 ILO Work in Fishing Convention C188, which sets standards for living conditions onboard vessels at sea. Member States of regional fishery management organizations should also set clear policies that strengthen efforts to fight IUU fishing and overfishing.

“Fortunately, there are a number of tools available that can help stop industrial IUU and overfishing and improve safety concerns in one of the world’s most dangerous professions,” Horn added. “While not addressing all the issues, they clearly demonstrate intent to tackle this problem. International authorities must also prioritize counting these deaths. Only with a clearer picture of what is happening on the water can officials know when—and where—stronger action is needed. This study should be a clarion call to international authorities, national governments and fisheries managers around the globe, to be accountable for addressing their piece of the problem. Fishers should no longer be dying in the dark, and governments can no longer ignore the severe human injustices and inequities resulting from insufficient action on IUU fishing, overfishing and climate change.”

Contact: Leah Weiser, lweiser@pewtrusts.org, +1-202-591-6761

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1934287/Cycle_of_IUU_Infographic.jpg

BEIJING, Nov. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — China and Pakistan on Wednesday vowed to make joint efforts in elevating the level of all-round strategic cooperation and inject new impetus into their all-weather strategic cooperative partnership.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said that Pakistan has always been a high priority in China’s neighborhood diplomacy when meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, who was among the first foreign leaders invited to Beijing after the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC). This is also the prime minister’s first visit to China since assuming office in April.

Sharif said that his visit is a “testament to the profound, iron-clad friendship” between Pakistan and China, adding that deepening Pakistan’s all-weather strategic cooperative partnership with China is a cornerstone of Pakistan’s foreign policy and the national consensus of Pakistan.

China ready to provide new opportunities

China will continue its fundamental policy of opening-up and provide new opportunities to Pakistan and the rest of the world through continuous development, Xi told Sharif.

The two sides should make full use of the Joint Cooperation Committee of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), advance CPEC with greater efficiency, and make CPEC an exemplar of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, he said.

Noting that CPEC has had a profound impact on Pakistan’s economic and social development, Sharif said Pakistan is ready to work with China to continue promoting high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

As a flagship program of the Belt and Road Initiative, CPEC has become a landmark of China-Pakistan cooperation. It has effectively boosted economic development, improved people’s livelihood, and generated positive socioeconomic effects in Pakistan. The recent 11th meeting of the Joint Cooperation Committee of CPEC was a success. Multiple common understandings were reached about CPEC’s future development.

The two sides also agreed to expand cooperation in digital economy, e-commerce, photovoltaic and other new-energy technologies, as well as advance cooperation concerning agriculture, science, technology and people’s livelihood.

China has been Pakistan’s largest trade and investment partner, the largest exporter and the second largest importer for six consecutive fiscal years since 2015.

Last year, trade between China and Pakistan reached $27.82 billion, a year-on-year increase of 59.1 percent. Chinese exports to Pakistan totaled $24.23 billion, a year-on-year increase of 57.8 percent, while imports from Pakistan were $3.59 billion, a year-on-year increase of 68.9 percent, showed data from the General Administration of Customs.

Jointly advancing global governance

China will work with Pakistan to advance the Global Development Initiative (GDI), the Global Security Initiative (GSI), and make the global economic governance system more fair, equitable and inclusive that benefits all, Xi said.

The GDI and the GSI, proposed by Xi Jinping in 2021 and 2022 respectively, seek to overcome the tunnel vision that contributes to the rise of de-globalization, populism and xenophobia, which risk impeding global governance of development and security.

The GDI highlights re-energizing and speeding up the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and building a global community of development, while the GSI gives clear answers to questions such as what security concept the world needs and how countries can achieve common security, which opens an important new way for global security governance.

Sharif expressed full support for the initiatives, adding that his country will strengthen communication with China in international and regional affairs to contribute positively to world peace and development.

The Pakistani prime minister also reiterated his country’s firm commitment to the one-China policy and its firm support for China’s position on issues concerning China’s core interests including Taiwan, Xinjiang and Hong Kong.

The Pakistan-China friendship is unbreakable, and Pakistan will always stand firmly with China, he added.

The two countries issued a joint statement, highlighting mutual support on issues concerning each other’s core interests, the key role of various bilateral cooperation mechanisms for deepening strategic communication, and cooperation in the areas of agriculture, mining, IT and socio-economic development under CPEC.

The two sides also signed and concluded a number of agreements, covering bilateral cooperation in areas of e-commerce, digital economy, export of agricultural products, financial cooperation, protection of cultural property and infrastructure, among others.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-11-02/Xi-holds-talks-with-Pakistani-PM-Muhammad-Shehbaz-Sharif-in-Beijing-1eD8tTJ79bW/index.html

Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbN3fhEkgLk

 

BEIJING, Nov. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — As China looks ahead to the future after the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), let’s recount how the world’s most populous country has fared during the past decade in its journey of economic, political, cultural, social and environmental development.

Economy

An analysis of the last two Five-Year Plans (FYPs) shows that rapid and sustainable economic development as well as industrial restructuring emerged as two of the main focuses of the 2011-2015 period, while the 13th FYP (2016-2020) aimed to maintain a medium-high rate of growth.

While China’s GDP more than doubled in the past decade, the contribution of its economic growth to the world economy stands at 18.5 percent.

Moreover, China made substantial leaps in scientific and technological development, building its own space station for future international collaboration and launching missions to the moon, Mars and beyond.

Politics

China adopted its first Civil Code in 2020 after a journey of 66 years. During the compilation, 1.02 million pieces of advice from around 425,000 people were solicited.

China also improved its security environment, with people’s sense of security topping 98 percent, according to a survey.

Moreover, while the CPC membership went up, the participation of non-CPC entities, especially in the consultative process, increased as well.

Society

China achieved one of its “two centenary goals” of becoming a “moderately prosperous society” in 2021. One of the most significant of the struggles has been of eliminating the scourge of absolute poverty.

Speaking of health, China’s average life expectancy increased from 74.83 years in 2010 to 78.2 years in 2021. While the mortality rates continued to dip, a large number of people were brought under the social security cover.

In the face of COVID-19, China prioritized human lives over economic gains through its dynamic zero-COVID policy and pushed vaccines as global public goods.

Furthermore, doubling of spending on the education sector in the past decade and universalization of free nine-year compulsory education could be part of the reason why China’s literacy rate is only 2.67 percentage points shy of hitting an absolute 100 percent.

Culture

In the past decade, the government took a range of initiatives to not only meet people’s contemporary cultural needs but also preserve history by building infrastructures like libraries, museums, and galleries.

China has also been going above and beyond in nurturing a strong culture of sports and fitness, forging ahead with its national strategies of Fitness-for-All, Healthy China Initiative, and Building China into a Country Strong in Sports.

Environment

China’s promise to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060 came hot on the heels of a decade of progress achieved in lowering its dependency on coal, shifting to alternative sources of energy, increasing forest coverage and biodiversity and taking a series of steps to mitigate climate change.

Visit “The Numbers of a Decade: A Journey through China’s Modernization” for an in-depth account of China’s journey in the past decade and insights on the way forward.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-11-02/The-Numbers-of-a-Decade-A-Journey-through-China-s-Modernization-1eCNV0yn2Ao/index.html

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1936471/image_5009787_56840119.jpg
Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1936472/image_5009787_56840198.jpg