The MCSCC Board of Directors makes significant steps for MCSCC operationalisation

March 2025 — Per Erik Bergh (CEO and Managing Director) and Andréa Durighello (Fisheries Expert) travelled to Johannesburg for the second Board of Directors meeting of the Fisheries Monitoring Control and Surveillance Coordination Centre (MCSCC).

This meeting was instrumental in making the next steps towards operationalising the MCSCC. Since it was established in June 2024, the Board of Directors has been tasked with supervising the operationalisation of the MCSCC, including setting up its institutional and operational processes. At this second Board of Directors meeting, the Board made significant progress towards this, endorsing important instruments related to the governance and the financial structure of the MCSCC, including adopting the Terms of Reference for the elaboration of a sustainability and mobilisation plan for the MCSCC.

The Board of Directors also endorsed the Code for the establishment and implementation of the Regional Register of Fishing Vessel through the MCSCC (RRFV Code) aimed at setting the framework for the establishment and implementation of the SADC Regional Register of Fishing Vessels (RRFV). The next step: the Joint Meeting of SADC Ministers of Agriculture and Food Security, Fisheries and Aquaculture in May, where those instruments will be submitted for approval. Endorsement of this Code to be Annexed to the MCSCC Charter is a major step towards setting up the RRFV as a key function of the MCSCC for combatting IUU fishing as well as to support the financial sustainability of its operations. “With a coordinated effort and continued collaboration among State Parties, the SADC region is well-positioned to protect its marine resources and ensure the sustainability of fisheries for future generations. Our collective efforts here today are essential to achieving this goal, showing leadership for the whole continent”, said Per Erik Bergh in his closing remarks to the Board of Directors.