Report of the Regional Workshop on Safety at Sea in Artisanal and Small-scale Fisheries in Latin America and the Caribbean

Book excerpt: The Regional Workshop on Safety at Sea in Artisanal and Small-scale Fisheries in Latin America and the Caribbean took place in the city of Paita, Peru, from 2 to 4 July 2007. Thirty-seven Latin American experts, as well as experts from Sweden and representatives of FAO and the Latin American Organization for Fisheries Development (OLDEPESCA) participated. The workshop was developed through joint cooperation between the Fishing Technology Service (FIIT) of FAO and OLDEPESCA. During the workshop, the results of the "Study on safety at sea in artisanal and small-scale fisheries in Latin America and the Caribbean" were presented, as well as other presentations on different aspects of safety at sea by invited experts. In addition, experts from participating countries made presentations on the situation of safety at sea in small-scale fisheries in their respective countries. The information presented was debated in plenary and included such themes as safety at sea in fisheries management, safety measures and fishing operations, registration of information on accidents at sea and legislation, as well as technology, design and construction of vessels. Finally, the framework for a regional strategy on safety of human lives at sea and a work programme whose objective is to strengthen systems on safety at sea through regional and international cooperation was elaborated and approved by the participants. The unedited presentations can be found on the CD-ROM included in this publication.