Directed to the Secretariat and to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
The CITES and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Secretariats are invited to continue and expand their collaboration concerning the conservation of and trade in sharks and rays, in particular by:
a) exploring options for using the existing iSharkFin tool for the identification of dried and skinned shark fins;
b) working with the World Customs Organization to expand customs codes for shark and ray species and product categories;
c) making relevant studies and information relating to the conservation and management of CITES-listed shark species available on the CITES sharks and rays portal;
d) maintaining and improving the database of measures on conservation and management of sharks, with the aim to provide a user-friendly overview of stricter domestic measures adopted by CITES Parties for CITES-listed shark and ray species, the species that are covered in this way, the dates of these measures, and links to the measures, including:
i) Legal protection for CITES-listed shark and ray species;
ii) Zero quotas for CITES-listed shark and ray species;
iii) Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) that have agreed to protect CMS Appendix I species; and
iv) Members of RFMOs with measures that prohibit retention, landing, or trade of CITES-listed species; and
e) continuing to support the development and application of guidance and capacity building tools for making NDFs, in particular for situations where data availability is low, the fishery is mostly artisanal, sharks are caught as bycatch, or where catches concern sharks that are part of shared stocks, and, upon request, supporting Parties with targeted advice to ensure compliance with Article IV for trade in CITES Appendix-II listed sharks and rays.
Document status
Invalid
Number/Code
17.213
Primary category
Species specific matters
Decision group
17.209 to 17.216
Decision directed to
Secretariat
Others
Meeting
Seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties
Document type
Decision