Nigeria Accepts WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies

•Urges other countries to follow suit 

•Okonjo-Iweala warns against fragmentation of world trading system

Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja and Oluchi Chibuzor in Lagos

Nigeria yesterday, formally deposited its instrument of acceptance for the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, making it the second African World Trade Organisation (WTO) member to do so after Seychelles.

Seychelles had on March 10, 2023, deposited its instrument of acceptance for the Agreement thereby becoming the third WTO member and first African country to do so.

Ambassador Adamu Mohammed Abdulhamid, presented Nigeria’s instrument of acceptance to the WTO Director-General, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in Geneva, Switzerland, yesterday.

Acceptances from two-thirds of WTO members are needed for the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies to come into effect.

A statement on the WTO website noted that while presenting Nigeria’s instrument of acceptance, Abdulhamid said: “The Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies presents a unique opportunity for Nigeria to promote sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth and the improvement of livelihoods while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem, believing that the Agreement shall put a stop to all harmful fisheries subsidies such as illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing activities by all WTO members.

“By this instrument of acceptance, Nigeria reassures its commitment to a rule-based multilateral trading system by guaranteeing its compliance with the Agreement as well as refraining from introducing any new subsidies that harm the marine environment while recognising the need for appropriate and effective special and differential treatment for developing and least developed countries which can be achieved through adequate policy space to develop its fisheries sector and technical assistance and capacity building in order to implement the discipline.

“Nigeria calls on other WTO members who are yet to ratify this agreement to do so as soon as possible so as to contribute to our global effort of preservation of the global fish stocks.”

Nigeria’s formal acceptance marked an important step toward entry into force of the Agreement with about one-third of the acceptances needed now in hand.

Nigeria is the fifth-largest African fishing nation and is estimated to lose about $70 million each year to illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing. The sector accounts for as much as five per cent of Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP) and supports the livelihood of about 24 million people.

Receiving Nigeria’s instrument of acceptance, the WTO DG, Okonjo-Iweala said: “I am profoundly grateful to Nigeria for formally accepting the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. I am proud to see the country’s continued commitment to sustainable development and its vote of confidence in the work of the WTO.

“Nigeria’s acceptance adds to our growing tally of members that have accepted the Agreement — we have received about one-third of the total that we need for the Agreement to enter into force.

“I hope that Nigeria’s action serves as an inspiration to other governments in Africa and the rest of the world to move swiftly to implement the Agreement and foster global cooperation for the benefit of our shared future.”

Adopted by consensus at the WTO’s 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) held in Geneva between June 12 and 17,  2022, the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies sets new binding, multilateral rules to curb harmful subsidies, which are a key factor in the widespread depletion of the world’s fish stocks.

In addition, the Agreement recognises the needs of developing and least-developed countries (LDCs) and establishes a fund to provide technical assistance and capacity building to help them implement the obligations.

The Agreement prohibits support for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, bans support for fishing overfished stocks, and ends subsidies for fishing on the unregulated high seas.

Members also agreed at MC12 to continue negotiations on outstanding issues, with a view to making recommendations by MC13, to be held in February 2024, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), for additional provisions that would further enhance the disciplines of the Agreement.

The WTO deals with the global rules of trade between nations. Its main function is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible.

In a related development, Okonjo-Iweala lamented challenges facing the global trading system and proposed solutions during a high-level special session on the second day of the Astana International Forum (AIF).

Themed, “High Level Special Session: Dialogue with Director-General of the WTO and the Kazakhstan’s Government,” the session was moderated by the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the President of Kazakhstan, Timur Suleimenov.

The WTO Director-General stressed that one of the biggest challenges was geopolitical tensions leading to decoupling, deglobalisation and the risk of fragmentation of the global trading system.

She noted that all of these arose from the severe vulnerabilities in supply chains and the trading system due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

She warned against the fragmentation of the world trading system.

“Let’s be cautious, because if the world trading system fragments, that could be very costly for the entire global economy,” she added.

The WTO estimates that if the world was to break up into two trading blocs, it would mean a five per cent loss in real global GDP in the longer term, which is bigger than the 3.5 per cent loss that countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) faced during the financial crisis of 2008-2009.

Okonjo-Iweala said it was a good sign that the G7 countries stated in May that they were not decoupling but that economic resilience requires de-risking and diversification.

On protectionism, she said the WTO urged countries not to retreat from trade, look inwards and become more protectionist but to maintain the stability and openness of the global trading system.

She emphasised that such an approach had delivered benefits for the past 75 years, lifting one billion people out of poverty.

Focusing on opportunities, Okonjo-Iweala named services as the fastest trade segment, adding that within it, digitally delivered services were growing at 8 per cent per year compared to goods trade, which is growing at 5.6 per cent annually.

“It is clear that the future of trade is services. It is digital, it is green, and it should be inclusive. That is my mantra,” she said.

She underscored the need to reach a plurilateral agreement involving all WTO member countries, particularly on e-commerce, to set the rules underpinning digital trade to assure stability, fairness, and competition within the digital trading arena.