Turning the world’s oceans into attractive investment opportunities could help finance the transition to sustainable fisheries, according to a new report.
Global fisheries required “immense and urgent” reform to safeguard their future in the face of the mismanagement of fishing stocks, the study published today (10 June) by the Prince of Wales’ International Sustainability Unit (ISU) and the US Environmental Defense Fund has warned.
The report, Towards Investment in Sustainable Fisheries - A Framework for Financing the Transition, said fisheries had a critical role to play in global food security, with the industry providing three billion people with at least 20% of their annual protein.
Calling for a greater collaboration between the fisheries and financial services industries, authors Justin Mundy of the ISU and Laurence Band of the EDF claimed financing the transition to sustainability could deliver attractive returns for investors.
“Fisheries generate significantly more value when they are sustainably managed, while also providing biological and social benefits,” they said. “Furthermore, the fundamental economics of the global seafood market suggest prices will continue on an upward trend, as will the demand for sustainable products.”
They added that fisheries transition displayed similar traits to those of a classic investment turnaround, with upfront costs of transition offset by the profits generated through more efficient and productive fisheries with higher harvests and lower costs.
The report said this could be achieved through a “co-ordinated approach between the public sector, NGOs and the private sector”, focusing on secure tenures for fishermen, sustainable harvests and robust monitoring and enforcement.
Securing these three key elements would safeguard stock health, operational efficiency and market value, and make the industry more profitable and attractive to investors, according to the report, which referenced World Bank claims that $50bn in additional value could be derived by the world’s fisheries every year if they were managed in more sustainable ways.
“Economy and ecology do not have to be locked into an irreconcilable struggle,” said the Prince of Wales. He added that the industry required “capital today to ensure that these benefits exist tomorrow”.
The Prince of Wales established the International Sustainability Unit in 2010 to explore ways to resolve some of the key environmental challenges facing the world, including food security and ecosystem resilience.
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