JOINT ROADMAP

Roadmaps aim to inform citizens and stakeholders about the Commission's work to allow them to provide feedback and to participate effectively in future consultation activities. Citizens and stakeholders are invited to provide views on the Commission's understanding of the problem and possible solutions and to share any relevant information that they may have.

Title of the initiative

Fisheries – EU-Cook Islands agreement (evaluation)

Fisheries – EU-Cook Islands agreement (negotiation mandate for a new protocol)

Lead DG – responsible unit

DG MARE – UNIT B3 (Trade negotiations and Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements)

Likely Type of initiative

Evaluation and Commission Recommendations

Indicative Planning

Evaluation: Q4 - 2019;

Negotiation mandate: Q1 2020.

Additional Information

http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/cfp/international/agreements/index_en.htm 

This Roadmap is provided for information purposes only. It does not prejudge the final decision of the Commission on whether this initiative will be pursued or on it final content. All elements of the initiative described by the Roadmap, including its timing, are subject to change.

A. Context, problem definition and subsidiarity check

Context

In the framework of the external dimension of the EU's Common Fishery Policy (CFP), the Commission negotiates and implements Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements (SFPAs) with third countries which allow the EU fleet to fish surplus resources in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the partner country. The EU provides to the partner country financial contribution for access to its waters as well as financial assistance for the improvement of its fisheries governance framework and capacity building relating to the development of a sustainable fisheries policy (sectoral support). The allocation and management of this funding is jointly agreed between the partner country and the EU. The EU public contribution is complemented by contributions paid by EU-vessel owners.

SFPAs are rendered operational through implementation Protocols. In the case of Cook Islands, the Agreement was concluded in 2016. The current Protocol to the fisheries partnership agreement covers the period of 14.10.2016 – 13.10.2020 with a financial contribution of 700 000 €/year, of which 350 000 €/year to support the fisheries sector of the Cook Islands fisheries policy in order to promote sustainability in its waters. This fisheries agreement allows EU vessels from 2 Member States - Spain and France - to fish in the Cook Islands waters.

The new CFP establishes mandatory ex-post and ex-ante evaluation requirements for SFPAs I , which form the basis of a possible new negotiating directive. In this way, the EU can be sure, among other things, that the fishing opportunities it negotiates are in line with the best available scientific advice, and will neither deplete fragile stocks, nor put its vessels in competition with local artisanal fishermen who depend upon coastal fisheries for their livelihoods and sustenance. 

Therefore, as is the case for all SFPAs, an independent ex-ante and ex-post evaluation for a possible renewal of the protocol will be carried out before the start of negotiations between the EU and the Cook Islands authorities on a new protocol.

The ex-post evaluation will analyse the fisheries policy and sector of Cook Islands and will assess the EU fleet's fishing activities in the waters under its jurisdiction so as to draw conclusions on the performance of the current protocol in terms of effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence, acceptability and added value. The ex-ante evaluation will assess the current and future needs in terms of fisheries relations between both partners i.e., evaluate the opportunity or not to renew the protocol, or to carry out other actions.

The evaluation study is scheduled to be completed by December 2019. The final report will be transmitted to the European Parliament and to the Council and will be made available on the EU Bookshop as well as on the fisheries website of the European Commission when the Commission adopts its draft recommendation for a Council decision to authorise the Commission to open negotiations with Cook Islands (planned in the 1st semester of 2020). The Commission's evaluation report (Staff working Document) is scheduled for November-December 2019.

Problem the initiative aims to tackle

EU Member States are interested in keeping access to the Cook Islands waters, for their industrial fleets. Subject to an official confirmation of a similar interest from the side of Cook Islands, negotiations of a new protocol will be opened. The protocol will aim at ensuring the sustainability of the resource as well as good value for money for the EU budget, while contributing to promoting good governance and economic benefits to the partner country. The EU needs fishing opportunities targeting tuna and highly migratory species. France and Spain, the Member States with fishing opportunities under the current protocol) would have a direct interest in a renewed protocol.

The key need of a renewed protocol that is shared by both the EU and Cook Islands is the sustainability of fisheries activities in the region and in Cook Islands waters. Both the EU and Cook Islands share the need to conclude a possible new Protocol in the spirit of fair, transparent, and equitable cooperation and respect for human rights and democratic principles, and with the objective of sharing benefits fairly between the two parties. A particular need for the EU is to maintain the level of fishing opportunities commensurate with the EU fleet's current interests. Cook Islands’ objectives include maximizing revenue and providing support for its domestic fisheries sector in line with its national fisheries strategy.

To allow continuity of fishing activities with a provisionally applied new Protocol before 14 October 2020 and calculating backwards, Council decision to provisionally apply the Protocol should intervene at the 1st quarter of 2020; the negotiations for renewing the current Protocol should be held in the first half of 2020. Therefore, the Commission plans to propose to the Council, in the 1st quarter of 2020, a draft recommendation to authorise the Commission to open negotiations with the Cook Islands Government on a new protocol.

Basis for EU intervention (legal basis and subsidiarity check)

The conservation of marine biological resources falls under the exclusive competence of the EU according to Article 3(1d) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Member States are not entitled to negotiate fisheries agreement with third countries. Therefore, the subsidiarity principle does not apply.

B. What does the initiative aim to achieve and how

Objectives of SFPAs are:

·To contribute towards resource and environmental sustainability through rational and sustainable exploitation of living marine resources of the coastal state;

·To provide the EU long distance fleet in general with access to fishing grounds in the Pacific and protect the employment linked to it;

·To support the development of a sustainable fisheries sector in Cook Islands; to facilitate the integration of developing coastal states into the global economy;

·To contribute towards combating illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing;

·To improve scientific and technical knowledge.

The analysis of policy options will be carried out as part of the ex-ante evaluation. The ex-ante evaluation will assess the following two scenarios:

·A renewed protocol between the EU and Cook Islands;

·No renewed protocol. In this case, under the current framework of the agreement "the exclusivity clause", EU vessels would not be allowed to fish in the Cook Islands waters.

·Further scenarios could be considered such as: no new protocol and denouncing of the SFPA.

The conclusion of a new protocol with Cook Islands is the condition for the EU fleet to access its fishing zone. In the absence of EU action, if no new protocol is concluded after the expiration of the current one, EU vessels will no longer be able to fish in the waters of Cook Islands as long as the framework agreement remains in force. This will cause a stop in fishing activities and loss of economic benefits for the EU fleet as well as for the local fisheries sector of Cook Islands, to the extent that the EU fleet contributes to it.

C. Better regulation

Consultation of citizens and stakeholders

Stakeholders will be consulted to ensure that the future negotiations on a possible renewal of the protocol with Cook Islands are informed by the views of relevant stakeholders and that the outcome is a fair and balanced deal for both parties.

The main stakeholders to be consulted include the representatives of the Member States administrations, the EU fisheries industry (fishing and processing), relevant regional and international organisations, NGOs as well as the fisheries authorities, industry and civil society of Cook Islands. The views of stakeholders will be sought on the implementation of the current protocol (utilisation rate, value for money, technical conditions, administrative procedures and the sectoral support). They will also be consulted on their needs in relation to a possible future protocol and the options that will be developed as part of the ex-ante evaluation including areas for improvement.

In view of the particular nature of the subject, no internet-based open public consultation has been planned. During the fourth quarter of 2019, targeted consultations will be carried out through preparatory meetings and targeted interviews, as follows:

1.With the representatives of the EU industry (fishing and processing) and relevant EU NGOs through the Long Distance Advisory Council (LDAC).

2.With representatives of the Member States' administrations and industry through technical meetings organised with the Member States including a dedicated part open to participation by industry representatives.

3.With regional and international organisations and with the Cook Islands authorities, fishing industry and civil society through the evaluation team and the EU fisheries attaché based in the EU Delegation in Fidji, as well as through the EU Delegation in Fidji. The evaluators will carry out a field visit to Cook Islands to collect the views of stakeholders through questionnaires and face-to-face interviews. 

The results of the targeted consultation activities will be presented in the Commission's evaluation report (Staff Working Document) to be published after the evaluation study has been finalised and before the start of any negotiations.

Evidence base and data collection

·Information is needed on the past activities of the EU fleet in Cook Islands, their economic results and the contribution to the economy in other third countries. The evaluators will gather such information through catch data available in the Commission, interviews with the EU fisheries sector, the competent authorities of Cook Islands and its local fisheries sector.

·Data will be available on catches by the EU fleet in Cook Islands for 2016, 2017 and 2018, as well as, if possible, data received from Cook Islands on catches by other foreign fleets. As regards highly migratory species, the “WCPFC Tuna Fishery Yearbook” provides an analysis of the regional situation including a stock evaluation. (https://www.wcpfc.int/statistical-bulletins and https://www.wcpfc.int/current-stock-status-and-advice )

·Management measures for highly migratory species (mainly tuna) are defined by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC), which is the competent regional fisheries management organisation (https://www.wcpfc.int/conservation-and-management-measures ).

·The results of the ex-ante evaluation study of the current agreement and its protocol (https://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/documentation/studies/cook_islands_en) finalised in July 2013 might also be relevant to some extent.

·A harmonised methodology has been developed for the economic analysis of the EU tuna fleet involved in SFPAs, and will be applied in the evaluation in relation to tuna fisheries.