Mapping the unjust global impact of harmful fisheries subsidies

Abstract Harmful fisheries subsidies contribute to overfishing leading to environmental and societal impacts1. If only fisheries within the subsidising nations’ jurisdiction were affected, then unilateral actions might be sufficient to help safeguard our ocean and the people reliant upon it. However, just as fish move between jurisdictions2, so too do the subsidised fishing fleets targeting them3. As such, the impacts and solutions to subsidies-induced overfishing are matters of international concern. Mapping that impact is therefore key to understanding these concerns and informing multilateral reform. Here we combine existing datasets4–6 to quantify the amount of harmful fisheries subsidies impacting the high seas, domestic and foreign waters, respectively. We estimate that between 24% and 43% of all harmful fisheries subsidies impact foreign waters or the high seas. We show that harmful subsidies primarily originate from countries with high-Human Development Index (HDI), strong fisheries management capacity and relatively sustainable fish stocks, yet disproportionately impact countries with low-HDI, lower management capacity and more vulnerable stocks. Indeed, over 40% of the harmful subsidies impacting low-HDI countries originate from high-HDI countries. This discrepancy between the source of harmful subsidies and the nations that are ultimately impacted is unsustainable and unjust. Policy-makers from all nations must push for effective multilateral subsidies reform. Prohibiting subsidies to distant-water fishing should be prioritised to support equitable and sustainable fisheries worldwide.