As governments gather for the 2017 International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) Annual Meeting in Marrakesh, Morocco (14-22 November), the amendment of the conservation measures for Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Bluefin tuna is the main item on the agenda.

The European Commission welcomes the agreement reached on 11 October in London between the European Union, Norway and Faroe Islands on the mackerel fishery in 2018.

At the meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (NAFO), which took place in Montreal from 18 to 22 September 2017, the European Union was instrumental in advancing key conservation measures based on the best available scientific advice, aiming to ensure sustainability for the stocks and predictability for the industry's future.

The European Union will participate in the upcoming meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation, which will take place in Montreal from 18 to 22 September 2017.

The Bluefin tuna fishing season in the Western and Central Mediterranean Sea and in the Adriatic Sea came to a close on 21 June at 8 AM for purse seiners, 3 days before the official closure on 24 June (open since 26 May). Thanks to the implementation of an international recovery plan and to the efforts of fishermen, catch limits for Bluefin tuna were increased in 2017, as the stock showed continued signs of recovery.

The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) held its 21st Annual Meeting in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from 22 to 26 May 2017. The meeting addressed important challenges facing the conservation and sustainable management of stocks covered by the organisation’s mandate.

During the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) meeting in Madrid from 20 to 22 February, agreement was reached among ICCAT Contracting Parties on the allocation of fishing quotas for Mediterranean Swordfish as part of an agreement under the recovery plan for this species put forward by the European Commission and adopted by ICCAT last year.

The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) invites applications for the position of Assistant Scientist.