In the new draft law “On Fisheries” brought up for discussion in its first reading at the meeting of the Parliament’s (Milli Majlis) Committee on Agrarian Policy, the main principles of state policy and the duties of the state in this sector in Azerbaijan have been precisely defined.
According to sea-news.az under the document, state policy in the fishing sector will be based on 12 core principles:
- Innovation and food security: Promotion of sustainable production methods and innovative technologies to increase productivity and ensure food security;
- Stimulation of local production: Supporting local production to meet domestic market demand and increase export potential;
- Human resource potential: Forming a qualified human resource potential in the fishing sector by supporting scientific research and training programs;
- Science-based aquaculture: Ensuring a scientifically justified compatibility of ecological, economic, and social interests for the sustainable development of aquaculture;
- Resource conservation: Preventing the depletion of fish and other aquatic bioresource stocks;
- Paid fishing mechanism: Ensuring that the catching of fish and other aquatic bioresources is subject to payment, except for cases specified by law;
- Quota criteria: Taking ecological, social, and economic factors into account when determining fish catch quotas;
- Special protection and prohibitions: Establishing a special protection regime for valuable species of fish and other aquatic bioresources, and suspending or prohibiting their catch;
- Digitalization: Full digitalization of management in the fields of fisheries and aquaculture;
- Animal welfare (Minimizing stress): Ensuring the preservation of the natural behavior of fish and other aquatic bioresources during fishing activities, and keeping and transporting them under conditions where pain and stress are minimized;
- Joint transboundary management: Joint management of fish and other aquatic bioresource stocks in transboundary water basins with neighboring states;
- International obligations: Fulfilling obligations within the framework of cooperation with regional and international organizations.
13 Core Duties of the State
To implement the aforementioned principles and regulate the sector, 13 strategic duties of the state have been defined in the new draft law:
- Preparation and implementation of state programs, strategies, national action plans, and concepts in the fishing sector;
- Formation and continuous improvement of the regulatory legal framework for the sector;
- Implementation of effective state control in the fishing sector;
- Execution of large-scale fish protection measures;
- Organization of fish breeding activities in water bodies;
- Carrying out land reclamation (melioration) activities in state-owned fishing water bodies that have not been granted for use or lease;
- Organization of special protection for fish and other aquatic bioresources included in the “Red Book” of the Republic of Azerbaijan;
- Conducting scientific and advanced research in the sector;
- Providing state support measures to entrepreneurs in the fishing sector;
- Organization of public awareness campaigns related to the sector;
- Prevention and elimination of legal violations (illegal fishing, etc.) in the fishing sector;
- Taking measures to prevent potential negative impacts on the environment for the purpose of protecting fishing water bodies;
- Implementation of international cooperation in the sector.
The draft law was highly appreciated by the committee members and recommended for the plenary session of the Milli Majlis.
