Chile and South Africa sign cooperation agreement on fisheries and aquaculture
The Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, Gloria de la Fuente, and the Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment of South Africa, Narend Sing, signed today a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the areas of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
This instrument will allow both countries to cooperate, share information, experiences and knowledge on research, conservation, management and sustainable use of marine resources, through the creation of a Joint Technical Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture. This will contribute to the advancement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 on the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans.
“The signing of this agreement is in line with our marine conservation and sustainability policy at the national and international level. We are currently implementing specific measures to safeguard marine biodiversity, and we highly value bilateral initiatives such as this one that allow us to advance towards that goal and also to strengthen south-south cooperation,” said the undersecretary.
The authorities also held a meeting where they discussed the different areas of collaboration in fisheries, sustainability and the environment. They also discussed Chile's application to host the Secretariat of the Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ).
They also noted that Chile is currently offering short-term courses specifically in the field of aquaculture at the Universidad Católica del Norte in Coquimbo, within the context of Agcid's international development cooperation policy, as part of the Nelson Mandela scholarship program. This course focused on African countries, including South Africa, is in its third version and aims to provide participants with the technological tools to cultivate aquatic resources and utilize aquaculture and fishery by-products, in the hope that aquaculture development will contribute to reducing hunger and poverty.
At the same time, it seeks to ensure that aquaculture production is sustainable with aquaculture and fishery by-product management models, and taking into account the blue circular economy.
As part of her activities in South Africa, Undersecretary Gloria de la Fuente also participated in a seminar on transition to democracy at the University of Johannesburg, entitled “South Africa Reflects: 30 Years of Democracy”. In addition, together with the Chilean delegation, she visited the Nelson Mandela Foundation, an organization dedicated to preserving the memory and legacy of the former president and anti-apartheid activist, and held a meeting with its executive director, Mbongiseni Buthelezi and his team, where they discussed matters related to democracy and human rights.
