Speeches
Fisheries
“How to fish less and earn more”: Smart investment in sustainable fisheries
10/07/2014
Commissioner Damanaki emphasised at a conference hosted in London by the Prince Charles Charity Trust on 10 July how the new Common Fisheries Policy helps drive the maritime economy in a sustainable way. Bringing fish stocks back to healthy levels alone will increase incomes for fishermen in the long term. The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) can help fishermen to buy more selective gears to better target the species they want to catch and to save time and fuel costs. But Commissioner Damanaki also stressed that EU funding is not enough: “We also need private investment and initiatives. We want to move away from traditional grants and subsidies towards new alternatives such as revolving funds, loans, guarantees or venture capital funds”. The Commissioner sees encouraging bottom-up projects evolve, such as local groups using EU funds to use fish or farmed algae for the pharmaceutical or cosmetic industry. "These solutions are the ones that create jobs and improve the quality of life for the people along Europe’s coasts.”
Read below Commissioner Damanaki's speech during her participation in the conference entitled ""Financing the transition towards a sustainable blue economy" on sustainable blue economy.
