DDG Nordquist calls for urgent action on fisheries subsidies at Monaco Blue Initiative

Your Serene Highnesses, Prince Albert of Monaco, Princess Charlene, distinguished ministers, and colleagues - thank you for the honor of joining you today at the Monaco Blue Initiative. Allow me first to convey the sincere greetings of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the WTO.

I would especially like to thank His Serene Highness for his unwavering leadership and decades-long commitment to advancing ocean conservation, sustainable finance, and international cooperation. 

The Monaco Blue Initiative has played a vital role in bringing together governments, scientists, business leaders, and civil society around one simple but urgent imperative: the health of our ocean, which covers 71% of Earth's surface and contributes up to $3 trillion to the global economy annually, cannot wait.

And the sad reality is that time is not on our side.

We are at a critical moment for global fisheries governance and for the future of the ocean economy. Globally, fish stocks are under increasing pressure from overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU), environmental impacts, and growing competition for marine resources. At the same time, hundreds of millions of people depend on fisheries and aquaculture for food security, jobs, and livelihoods.

That is why the work underway at the WTO on these issues matters far beyond Geneva.

Three years ago, WTO members achieved a historic breakthrough with the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies - the first multilateral trade agreement with sustainability at its core. The Agreement prohibits harmful subsidies linked to IUU fishing, as well as subsidies for fishing overfished stocks and fishing on the unregulated high seas.

The Agreement has thus far been accepted by 120 WTO members - a strong signal of international commitment. But we are aiming for universal acceptance by all 166 WTO members because fish certainly don't recognize borders, and harmful subsidies in one part of the world may affect ecosystems and communities elsewhere. I therefore encourage all those in this room - governments, institutions, foundations, and partners - to help us get the remaining 46 WTO members to deposit their instruments of acceptance as soon as possible.

WTO members are already making real progress in its effective implementation. The WTO Fisheries Subsidies Committee is now up and running, creating an important platform for transparency, accountability, and cooperation. This may sound technical, but it is essential. Effective global governance depends not only on reaching agreements, but on ensuring they are implemented and work in practice.

Importantly, we are also supporting developing countries in this transition.

Thanks to the generous support of 18 WTO members, the WTO Fish Fund is already helping developing and least-developed countries implement the Agreement. So far, 26 grants have been approved and a second round of applications are now underway. One example is Ghana, which launched a new three-year fisheries programme, supported in part by the Fish Fund, to strengthen oversight of fishing subsidies and to tackle illegal fishing.

So. I encourage those in a position to do so to contribute to the Fund if you haven't already. And if you come from an eligible government, please closely follow upcoming funding opportunities and submit applications. 

But our work on the fish treaty is not finished - and the clock is ticking.

Under the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, WTO members committed to continue negotiations on a few issues that could not be resolved during the first phase of negotiations. The Agreement contains a smart commitment mechanism: negotiators have to finish what we call Fish 2 four years after Fish 1 entry into force, that is by September 2029. WTO members must now deliver on this second phase of negotiations, which will in large part address subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing. And here's the thing - if the second part of the treaty isn't finalized, the first part may disappear.  So there is pressure to keep working.

At our last Ministerial Conference, WTO members reaffirmed their commitment to this objective. Work continues actively in Geneva, and negotiations will resume in the coming months. In the meantime, we are organizing a series of information sessions and technical discussions to help ensure all WTO members are on the same page as we move into this next phase.

The stakes could not be higher. As you well know, every year of delay means harmful subsidies further distort markets, deplete resources, and undermine the communities they are meant to support, which makes it harder and more costly to restore healthy fisheries. Imagine if these funds (22 billion annually, as Prince Albert has mentioned) were instead invested in more productive and sustainable priorities - how much stronger would our future be?

But what gives me hope is the growing recognition that healthy oceans are not in tension with economic prosperity - they are foundational to it. According to research, overfishing costs the global economy almost 700,000 jobs annually. By contrast, sustainable fisheries support jobs, food security, trade, and resilience. Protecting the ocean is not only an environmental imperative; it is an economic and human one.

Now I'm going to give a plug to the David Attenborough's film called Ocean. But a picture is worth a thousand words. Seeing the trawlers destroy the ocean floor is simply jaw-dropping. The film is a powerful call to action, and it offers striking real-world evidence that marine life can recover with remarkable speed when given the chance. I strongly encourage you to watch it.

The Monaco Blue Initiative shows that solutions are possible when political will, science, and international cooperation come together. The momentum is there, the institutions are in place, and the tools are emerging - so let's deliver!

Thank you.