Government Approves India's Accession to the Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement

14 October 2026National

The Central Government approved India's accession to the Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA) on 14 October 2026, a step steered by the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. SIOFA, signed at Rome on 7 July 2006 and in force since June 2012, manages non-highly-migratory fishery resources on the high seas of the southern Indian Ocean, covering fish, molluscs, crustaceans and sedentary species. India had been a Cooperating Non-Contracting Party since 2022, with no say in decisions. Full membership lets Indian-flagged vessels target squid, toothfish and alfonsino, join the Scientific and Compliance Committees, and take part in the High Seas Boarding and Inspection Scheme.

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Regional Fisheries Management Organisations draw their mandate from the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement | India is also a member of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission | The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying was created in 2019; PM Matsya Sampada Yojana launched 2020

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