A global patchwork.

 Regional disparities remain stark. In the Pacific coast of the United States and Canada, over 90% of stocks are sustainably fished. In Australia and New Zealand, the figure exceeds 85%. The Antarctic – governed by strict international regulations – reports 100% sustainability.

But along northwest Africa’s coast, from Morocco to the Gulf of Guinea, over half of all stocks are overfished, with little sign of recovery. The Mediterranean and Black Sea fare even worse: 65% of stocks there are unsustainable. Yet there is a positive sign – the number of boats going out to fish in that region has declined by nearly a third over the past decade, offering hope that policy shifts are beginning to take effect.

Assistant Director-General Manuel Barange, of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), unveiled the agency’s report on the world’s fish stocks. 

For Mr. Barange, the lesson is clear: where management systems exist – and are backed by resources – stocks recover.

But science-based management is expensive. “Some regions can't afford the infrastructure needed for control and monitoring, the science needed, the institutions needed,” he said.

“We need to build up capacity for the regions that are not doing so well. Not to blame them, but to understand the reasons why they are not doing so well and support them in rebuilding their populations.”