OA and Fisheries Management

1. Outcome

This Circular provides guidance on using Ocean Accounts to inform fisheries management decisions. Fisheries represent one of the most economically significant and ecologically consequential ocean-based activities, directly affecting the livelihoods of millions of people globally while placing substantial pressures on marine ecosystems. Ocean Accounts provide a structured framework for integrating fisheries stock assessment data with economic performance indicators and sustainability metrics, enabling evidence-based decision-making that balances extraction with ecosystem health.

Readers of this Circular will gain understanding of how fisheries fit within the Ocean Accounting framework, particularly how aquatic resources are treated as environmental assets under the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA). The guidance addresses the practical integration of biological stock assessment data with asset accounts, approaches to valuing fish stocks, methods for deriving economic performance indicators for the fisheries sector, and the calculation of sustainability indicators aligned with international targets including SDG 14.4^[1].

Decision use cases: Ocean Accounts for fisheries support four critical management functions. First, quota setting using asset account depletion data: physical asset accounts tracking biomass, natural growth, and extraction enable managers to assess whether current catch levels exceed sustainable yield, providing an objective basis for setting Total Allowable Catch (TAC) quotas. Second, MSY verification: comparing stock biomass estimates to BMSY benchmarks derived from stock assessments enables verification that fisheries management plans are achieving their stated objectives of maintaining stocks at levels capable of producing maximum sustainable yield. Third, subsidy reform using flow accounts: flow accounts for fisheries subsidies linked to stock status indicators reveal whether government support is contributing to overcapacity and overfishing or promoting sustainable practices, informing policy design aligned with SDG 14.6. Fourth, SDG 14.4 reporting: asset accounts provide the direct inputs for SDG indicator 14.4.1 (proportion of fish stocks within biologically sustainable levels), ensuring that international reporting is grounded in comprehensive national accounting data. These use cases connect directly to the policy frameworks described in TG-1.1 National Ocean Budgets, where fisheries depletion costs are integrated into natural capital budgeting.

Downward connections to accounts, indicators, and data: The policy decisions supported by this Circular depend on three foundational accounting structures. Fish stock asset accounts (see TG-3.1 Asset Accounts) track biomass, natural growth, extraction, and depletion in physical and monetary terms, providing the data infrastructure for sustainable yield management. Flow accounts for fish harvest (see TG-3.2 Flows from Environment to Economy) record gross catch, landings, and discards, enabling catch statistics to be reconciled with stock assessments and supporting analysis of fishing impacts across the supply chain. Ecosystem condition indicators (see TG-2.1 Biophysical Indicators) for fish nursery habitats such as mangroves, seagrass meadows, and estuaries link habitat health to fisheries productivity, demonstrating how ecosystem degradation affects the regenerative capacity of fish stocks. These three layers--asset stocks, flow accounts, and condition indicators--form an integrated information system enabling Ocean Accounts to translate biological stock assessment science into policy-relevant insights.

The Circular serves fisheries management agencies, national statistical offices, and other stakeholders seeking to apply accounting approaches to improve fisheries governance and sustainability.

2. Requirements

• TG-0.1 General Introduction

Related Circulars:

• TG-3.1 Asset Accounts -- General methodology for physical and monetary asset accounts
• TG-3.2 Flows from Environment to Economy -- Treatment of fish harvest as natural resource input
• TG-3.9 Aquaculture -- Distinguishing cultivated from natural aquatic resources
• TG-6.7 Fisheries Accounting: Integrating Stock Assessment -- Detailed thematic methodology for linking stock assessment to accounts

3. Guidance Material

3.1 Fisheries in the Ocean Accounting Framework

Fisheries occupy a distinctive position within the Ocean Accounting framework, spanning both natural biological resources and cultivated biological resources depending on whether production occurs through wild capture or aquaculture^[2]. This fundamental distinction has important implications for how fisheries are recorded in accounts and what sustainability concepts apply.

3.1.1 Classification of Aquatic Resources

Aquatic resources are classified within the SEEA Central Framework as one of five categories of natural resources that comprise natural capital^[3]. The classification distinguishes between:

Cultivated aquatic resources include all aquatic organisms produced within aquaculture facilities where there is active management over growth and regeneration. Farming implies intervention in the rearing process to enhance production, such as regular stocking, feeding, and protection from predators, as well as individual or corporate ownership of the stock being cultivated^[4]. Cultivated aquatic resources are further divided into:

• Resources held for harvest (treated as inventories)
• Breeding stock (treated as fixed assets)

For detailed guidance on aquaculture accounting, see TG-3.9 Aquaculture.

Natural aquatic resources comprise wild fish stocks, crustaceans, molluscs, marine mammals, and other aquatic organisms that are harvested through capture fishing operations where growth and regeneration occur naturally without direct management by institutional units^[5]. Natural aquatic resources are considered natural biological resources and are classified as non-produced non-financial assets.

This distinction determines the accounting treatment. The growth of cultivated aquatic resources in aquaculture facilities is treated as a process of production that falls within the SNA production boundary. In contrast, wild capture fisheries target natural biological resources that are outside the production boundary until harvest, and are therefore subject to depletion accounting when extraction exceeds sustainable yield^[6]. The harvest of wild fish represents a flow from the environment to the economy, as described in TG-3.2 Flows from Environment to Economy.

3.1.2 Spatial Scope and Jurisdictional Boundaries

For accounting purposes, aquatic resources are attributed to a country based on their location within that country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) throughout their life cycles, covering both marine and inland waters^[7]. The legal framework for defining these boundaries is provided by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which establishes that coastal States have sovereign rights over the natural resources of their EEZ extending up to 200 nautical miles from their baselines^[8].

Migrating and straddling fish stocks present particular measurement challenges. Such stocks are considered to belong to a country during the period when they inhabit its EEZ. When exploitation control has been established through international agreements that define a country's access rights to shared resources, that portion of the stock can be attributed to the country^[9]. The Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of UNCLOS relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks and the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries provide the legal framework for managing these shared resources^[10].

Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) play a central role in coordinating the management of shared and straddling stocks and can serve as important data sources for compiling national accounts. In the Asia-Pacific region, several RFMOs are particularly relevant. The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) manages highly migratory tuna and billfish stocks across the western and central Pacific, maintaining detailed catch, effort, and stock assessment databases that member States can use to populate their asset accounts. The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) performs a similar function for tuna and tuna-like species in the Indian Ocean. The Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT) manages the single global stock of southern bluefin tuna and provides allocation-based data useful for attributing shared stocks to individual countries. Countries participating in these organisations should utilise RFMO stock assessment outputs as primary inputs when compiling aquatic resource asset accounts, supplementing national data where domestic assessments are unavailable^[11].

3.1.3 Species Classification

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Information System (ASFIS) provides a standard species classification containing over 11,500 species. This is linked to the International Standard Classification for Aquatic Animals and Plants (ISCAAP), which divides commercial species into 50 groups based on taxonomic, ecological, and economic characteristics^[12]. For accounting purposes, aquatic resources can be grouped into nine divisions:

1. Freshwater fishes
2. Diadromous fishes (species migrating between fresh and salt water)
3. Marine fishes
4. Crustaceans
5. Molluscs
6. Whales, seals and other aquatic mammals
7. Miscellaneous aquatic animals
8. Miscellaneous aquatic animal products
9. Aquatic plants

3.2 Stock Assessment Integration

A central challenge in applying Ocean Accounts to fisheries management is integrating biological stock assessment data with the accounting framework. Stock assessment science provides estimates of fish abundance, population dynamics, and sustainable harvest levels that are essential inputs for compiling aquatic resource asset accounts^[13].

For detailed methodology on linking stock assessment models to accounting structures, see TG-6.7 Fisheries Accounting: Integrating Stock Assessment.

3.2.1 Physical Asset Accounts for Aquatic Resources

Physical asset accounts for aquatic resources record the opening and closing stocks of fish biomass and the changes between these points due to natural growth, harvest, and other factors. The general methodology for physical asset accounts is described in TG-3.1 Asset Accounts. The account structure for aquatic resources parallels other environmental asset accounts in the SEEA Central Framework^[14]:

Units of measurement should be consistent across all entries, typically tonnes of live weight biomass. Conversion factors may be needed when data are available in different units (numbers of fish, processed weight)^[15].

3.2.2 Stock Assessment Methods

Fishery biologists employ various methods to estimate absolute stock size, including:

Virtual Population Analysis (VPA): A mathematical reconstruction of fish population dynamics based on age-structured catch data, using known catch numbers and estimated natural mortality to work backward through time and estimate historical population sizes^[16].

Tag-recapture analysis: Physical or electronic tagging of individuals followed by recapture to estimate population size based on the proportion of tagged fish in subsequent catches^[17].

Acoustic and trawl surveys: Direct measurement using echo-sounders, trawl surveys, or visual observation (including drone and satellite-based observation for surface species) to estimate biomass within surveyed areas, extrapolated to the full stock range^[18].

Catch Per Unit Effort (CPUE): When absolute stock size estimates are unavailable, CPUE provides an index of relative abundance. The ratio of catch to effort (fishing days, gear deployed, vessel power) serves as a proxy indicator of stock density, though this approach requires careful adjustment for changes in technology, fleet composition, and management arrangements^[19].

It is important to record the impact of changes in model parameters as reappraisals in the asset accounts to distinguish methodological revisions from actual physical changes in stock size^[20].

Countries with limited capacity for full stock assessments can still compile informative aquatic resource accounts by adopting a tiered approach to data requirements. At the most basic level (Tier 1), countries can use catch time series combined with CPUE indices to derive relative abundance trends, which support qualitative assessments of whether stocks are increasing, stable, or declining. At an intermediate level (Tier 2), surplus production models such as the Schaefer model can be fitted to catch and effort data to generate estimates of maximum sustainable yield and current biomass relative to B_MSY, without requiring age-structured data. At the most detailed level (Tier 3), full age-structured or length-based assessments provide absolute biomass estimates and fishing mortality rates. Countries should aim to compile accounts at the highest tier supported by their data, while recognising that even Tier 1 accounts--when consistently maintained over time--provide valuable information on stock trajectories and can flag potential sustainability concerns^[21].

3.2.3 Sustainable Yield and Depletion

A critical concept linking stock assessment to accounting is sustainable yield--defined as "the surplus or excess of animals or plants that may be removed from a population without affecting the capacity of the population to regenerate itself" (SEEA CF para 5.82)^[22]. For any given population, if extraction is less than sustainable yield, no depletion should be recorded. Depletion occurs only when extraction exceeds sustainable yield, representing a genuine reduction in the asset base.

The sustainable yield concept derives from population biology models that relate harvest to stock size. At low population sizes, little surplus is available for harvest because absolute reproduction is limited. At high population sizes approaching carrying capacity, surplus is also limited because density-dependent factors reduce reproduction. Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) occurs at intermediate population levels where the combination of population size and per-capita reproduction generates the largest surplus^[23].

Modern fisheries management increasingly uses precautionary reference points that provide a buffer below MSY to account for uncertainty in stock assessments and environmental variability. These include F_0.1 (fishing mortality at which the slope of the yield-per-recruit curve is 10% of its origin value) and B_lim (limit reference point for biomass below which recruitment may be impaired)^[24].

Depletion of natural aquatic resources, in physical terms, equals gross catch less sustainable yield. Since population dynamics are modeled with uncertainty, year-to-year variation between estimated sustainable yield and actual growth must be expected. Depletion should therefore be recorded only when extraction exceeds normal variation in natural growth rates^[25].

Climate change is altering fish stock productivity, distribution, and recruitment patterns, which has direct implications for the calculation of sustainable yield in asset accounts. As ocean temperatures shift, species ranges are moving poleward, productivity regimes are changing, and the carrying capacity of particular marine areas may increase or decrease. These changes mean that sustainable yield is not a fixed quantity but should be recalculated periodically to reflect current environmental conditions. When compiling accounts, compilers should use the most recent stock assessment outputs, which increasingly incorporate environmental covariates such as sea surface temperature and ocean productivity indices. Where formal stock assessments are not updated frequently, compilers should document the environmental assumptions underlying existing sustainable yield estimates and note any known environmental shifts that may affect their validity. Adjustments to reference points (such as recalculating B_MSY or F_MSY under changed productivity assumptions) should be recorded as reappraisals in the asset account rather than as physical changes in stock size, thereby maintaining the integrity of the accounting framework^[26].

3.3 Economic Performance Indicators

Ocean Accounts enable the derivation of economic indicators that characterise the performance and contribution of the fisheries sector within the broader ocean economy and national economy. For comprehensive guidance on ocean economy measurement, see TG-2.5 Ocean Economy Structure.

3.3.1 Production and Value Added

The primary economic indicators derive from supply and use accounts that record the output of fisheries industries. Key measures include:

Gross output: The total value of fish and fishery products produced, valued at basic prices (excluding taxes on products)^[27].

Intermediate consumption: The value of goods and services used as inputs in fishing operations, including fuel, gear, bait, ice, and vessel maintenance.

Gross value added (GVA): The difference between gross output and intermediate consumption, representing the contribution of the fisheries sector to GDP.

Net value added: GVA less consumption of fixed capital (depreciation of vessels and equipment) and, following the 2025 SNA treatment, less depletion of natural fish stocks^[28].

These measures can be compiled for the fisheries sector as a whole or disaggregated by:

• Type of fishing (commercial, artisanal/small-scale, recreational, subsistence)
• Fishing method or gear type (trawl, purse seine, longline, gillnet, etc.)
• Target species or species groups
• Geographic area or fishing ground
• Enterprise size (by vessel tonnage, crew size, or revenue)

3.3.2 Employment Indicators

Employment in fisheries encompasses diverse working arrangements from large commercial operations to small-scale artisanal fishing. Key employment indicators include:

• Number of persons engaged in fishing activity
• Full-time equivalent (FTE) employment
• Employment by gender, age, and other demographic characteristics
• Compensation of employees in the fisheries sector
• Mixed income of owner-operators and unincorporated fishing enterprises

Employment data should distinguish between employment in capture fisheries and employment in aquaculture, and may further distinguish processing and marketing activities within the broader fisheries value chain^[29].

Small-scale fisheries employ an estimated 90 per cent of the world's capture fishers and fish workers, yet these workers are frequently undercounted in official labour statistics because many operate informally, seasonally, or on a part-time basis^[30]. To improve coverage, countries should consider supplementing standard labour force surveys with targeted approaches. These include adding fisheries-specific modules to household surveys that capture seasonal and part-time fishing activity; conducting frame surveys at landing sites and fishing communities to enumerate active fishers, vessels, and gear; using key-informant interviews in coastal and riparian communities to validate administrative records; and cross-referencing vessel and licence registries with labour market data where registration systems exist. Where direct survey coverage remains limited, proxy estimation methods--such as applying average crew sizes to registered vessel counts or using per-capita fish consumption to estimate subsistence harvesting effort--can provide reasonable orders of magnitude. Countries participating in the Global Strategy to Improve Agricultural and Rural Statistics (GSARS) may draw on its guidelines for designing cost-effective fisheries employment surveys^[31].

3.3.3 Trade and International Flows

Fisheries are a globally traded commodity with significant international flows. Relevant trade indicators include:

• Exports and imports of fish and fishery products (volume and value)
• Trade balance in fishery products
• Main trading partners and export markets
• Foreign direct investment in the fishing sector

For countries whose residents harvest fish from other countries' EEZs, the accounting must carefully distinguish between: (a) catches from national aquatic resources regardless of who harvests them, and (b) catches by national fishing operations regardless of where they fish^[32]. This distinction is essential for correctly measuring changes in national aquatic resource stocks versus national fishing industry output.

3.4 Sustainability Indicators

Ocean Accounts support the derivation of sustainability indicators that assess whether current fisheries practices can be maintained over time without degrading the natural resource base.

3.4.1 Stock Status Indicators

Physical asset accounts provide the foundation for key stock status indicators:

Stock biomass relative to reference points: Comparing current estimated biomass (B) to biological reference points such as:

• B_MSY: Biomass at which MSY is achieved
• B_0: Unfished (virgin) biomass
• B_lim: Limit reference point below which recruitment is impaired

Fishing mortality relative to reference points: Comparing current fishing mortality rate (F) to:

• F_MSY: Fishing mortality that produces MSY
• F_0.1: Precautionary proxy for F_MSY
• F_lim: Limit above which stock decline is expected

Proportion of stocks within biologically sustainable levels: SDG indicator 14.4.1 measures the percentage of fish stocks that are within biologically sustainable levels, defined as stocks with abundance at or above the level that can produce MSY^[33].

3.4.2 Depletion-Adjusted Income Measures

The 2025 SNA now treats depletion of natural resources as a cost of production alongside depreciation, giving greater prominence to net income measures that account for the using up of natural capital (SNA 2025 Annex 4, para A4.59)^[34]. For fisheries, this means:

Net fishing income: Gross value added from fishing less the value of depletion. This measure reflects the genuine contribution of fisheries to national income after accounting for any reduction in the fish stock asset.

Sustainable net income: Income that could be earned indefinitely if harvesting were limited to sustainable yield levels.

When depletion occurs (extraction exceeds sustainable yield), the difference between gross income and sustainable net income represents income generated by depleting capital rather than genuine sustainable returns.

3.4.3 SDG 14 Alignment

Ocean Accounts support monitoring of several SDG 14 targets related to fisheries^[35]:

SDG 14.4: "By 2020, effectively regulate harvesting and end overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and destructive fishing practices and implement science-based management plans, in order to restore fish stocks in the shortest time feasible, at least to levels that can produce maximum sustainable yield as determined by their biological characteristics."

• Indicator 14.4.1: Proportion of fish stocks within biologically sustainable levels
• Asset accounts directly provide data on stock status relative to MSY benchmarks

SDG 14.6: "By 2020, prohibit certain forms of fisheries subsidies which contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, eliminate subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and refrain from introducing new such subsidies."

• Environmental subsidy accounts can track government support to the fisheries sector
• Analysis can assess whether subsidies enhance or undermine sustainability

SDG 14.7: "By 2030, increase the economic benefits to small island developing States and least developed countries from the sustainable use of marine resources, including through sustainable management of fisheries, aquaculture and tourism."

• Indicator 14.7.1: Sustainable fisheries as a proportion of GDP in small island developing States, least developed countries and all countries
• Directly derived from economic accounts measuring fisheries GVA

SDG 14.b: "Provide access for small-scale artisanal fishers to marine resources and markets."

• Indicator 14.b.1: Degree of application of a legal/regulatory/policy/institutional framework which recognizes and protects access rights for small-scale fisheries
• Disaggregated accounts can track the distribution of fisheries benefits across scales of operation

3.5 Practical Applications

3.5.1 Informing Total Allowable Catch Decisions

Fisheries managers commonly set Total Allowable Catch (TAC) limits based on biological stock assessments. Ocean Accounts enhance this process by:

• Providing a systematic framework for recording and updating stock information
• Enabling comparison of catch levels against sustainable yield benchmarks
• Tracking the cumulative impact of harvesting decisions on stock levels over time
• Integrating economic information to assess the costs and benefits of different TAC options^[36]

The following decision framework illustrates how data from physical asset accounts and stock assessments can be combined to guide TAC decisions. By cross-referencing the current stock status (expressed as the ratio of biomass to the biomass at maximum sustainable yield, B/B_MSY) with recorded catch relative to sustainable yield (SY), managers can identify the appropriate management response.

Table 3.5.1: Sustainable yield decision framework for fisheries management

This decision matrix translates accounting outputs into actionable management guidance. When a stock is healthy (B >= B_MSY) and catch does not exceed sustainable yield, no depletion is recorded and the current TAC can be maintained. When catch exceeds sustainable yield even for a healthy stock, depletion is recorded in the asset account, signalling that the TAC should be reduced to prevent the stock from falling below its MSY benchmark. For depleted stocks, even catch levels below the current (reduced) sustainable yield may be consistent with a rebuilding strategy, while catch exceeding sustainable yield for a depleted stock represents the most urgent case for TAC reduction. Managers should interpret these categories in conjunction with the precautionary reference points discussed in Section 3.2.3 and with due regard for uncertainty in stock assessment estimates^[37].

3.5.2 Worked Example: Using Asset Account Data to Inform Quota Decisions

This worked example demonstrates how a fisheries management agency can use asset account data to assess stock status and adjust Total Allowable Catch quotas, using synthetic data for a hypothetical coastal demersal fishery.

Scenario description: The Coastal Demersal Fishery Management Authority oversees a commercially important snapper species within the national EEZ. The fishery is managed using annual TAC quotas allocated through an Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) system. Stock assessment scientists conduct annual assessments using age-structured models calibrated to catch data, fishery-independent trawl surveys, and commercial CPUE indices. The authority compiles physical asset accounts for the snapper stock, integrated with the stock assessment process.

Step 1: Compile physical asset account

The authority compiled the following physical asset account for snapper stock for the accounting year 2024, based on the 2024 stock assessment:

Step 2: Assess stock status against decision framework

The authority applies the decision framework from Table 3.5.1:

• Stock status: B/B_MSY = 0.74, indicating the stock is below MSY benchmark (depleted)
• Catch relative to sustainable yield: Gross catch (10,500) > sustainable yield (8,500), so depletion is recorded
• Decision category: "< 1.0 (depleted)" AND "Catch > current SY" → Urgent TAC reduction

Step 3: Calculate TAC adjustment

The management authority determines that the TAC should be reduced to allow stock rebuilding. Two scenarios are considered:

Scenario A: Reduce catch to sustainable yield level

• Set TAC for 2025 at 8,500 tonnes (equal to sustainable yield)
• This prevents further depletion but does not actively rebuild the stock
• At constant sustainable yield, stock biomass would stabilize at current level (40,600 tonnes)

Scenario B: Reduce catch below sustainable yield to enable rebuilding

• Set TAC for 2025 at 7,000 tonnes (below sustainable yield by 1,500 tonnes)
• Stock expected to increase by approximately 1,500 tonnes per year
• Rebuilding target: return to B_MSY (55,000 tonnes) within 10 years
• Required annual rebuilding increment: (55,000 - 40,600) / 10 = 1,440 tonnes/year
• TAC of 7,000 tonnes achieves this rebuilding trajectory

The authority selects Scenario B, setting the 2025 TAC at 7,000 tonnes, representing a 33% reduction from 2024 gross catch.

Step 4: Communicate decision using asset account framework

The authority publishes the decision with the following justification, grounded in asset accounting concepts:

"The 2024 physical asset account for snapper stock shows closing biomass of 40,600 tonnes, 26% below the B_MSY reference level of 55,000 tonnes. Gross catch of 10,500 tonnes exceeded sustainable yield of 8,500 tonnes, resulting in depletion of 2,000 tonnes of stock capital. To reverse this trajectory and rebuild the stock asset to sustainable levels within 10 years, the 2025 Total Allowable Catch is set at 7,000 tonnes. This reduction allows net stock growth of approximately 1,500 tonnes per year. Continued monitoring through annual asset accounts will track rebuilding progress, and the TAC will be adjusted as the stock approaches the MSY target."

Step 5: Monitor rebuilding through subsequent accounts

In subsequent years, the authority will track the rebuilding trajectory:

• Annual asset accounts show whether closing stock is increasing toward the 55,000 tonne target
• Depletion entries will shift to zero once catch falls below sustainable yield
• When B/B_MSY reaches 1.0, the TAC can be increased back toward MSY level of 8,500 tonnes

Interpretation: This worked example demonstrates how asset accounts translate biological stock assessment outputs into a structured information framework that directly informs management decisions. The accounting identity (opening stock + additions - reductions = closing stock) ensures internal consistency between stock estimates and observed catch. The derived measure of depletion provides a clear sustainability signal: when depletion is positive, the stock asset is being eroded. The decision framework translates this signal into management action, and the rebuilding trajectory becomes a trackable objective within the accounts. This integration of stock assessment science with accounting discipline provides transparency, consistency, and accountability to the TAC-setting process.

3.5.3 Evaluating Fisheries Subsidies

Governments provide various forms of support to fisheries, from fuel subsidies to vessel construction programs. Ocean Accounts enable systematic assessment of:

• The magnitude and composition of fisheries subsidies
• Whether subsidies enhance capacity (potentially harmful) or improve sustainability (beneficial)
• The distributional effects of subsidies across different types of fishing operations
• Alignment with international commitments under SDG 14.6 and WTO fisheries subsidies disciplines^[38]

3.5.4 Assessing Recovery Programs

For depleted stocks, recovery programs aim to rebuild populations to sustainable levels. Ocean Accounts support:

• Baseline measurement of stock status at program initiation
• Tracking of stock recovery through periodic asset accounts
• Assessment of economic impacts during rebuilding periods (short-term costs)
• Evaluation of long-term benefits from restored sustainable harvesting^[39]

3.5.5 Quota Valuation and Management

Individual Transferable Quotas (ITQs) are an increasingly common approach to fisheries management. When quotas are freely traded, their market prices can inform the valuation of fish stocks^[40]. Ocean Accounts support:

• Recording quota values as assets (permits to use environmental assets under SEEA CF para 4.178)
• Tracking changes in quota values over time
• Distinguishing between the value of quotas and the value of underlying fish stocks
• Assessing the equity implications of quota allocation systems

When using ITQ market prices to estimate the value of fish stock assets, compilers should be aware that quota prices may not fully reflect the underlying resource value. Quota markets are often thin (few transactions), geographically segmented, and subject to regulatory constraints on ownership concentration and foreign participation that can distort prices. In addition, quota prices reflect private expectations of future harvesting returns, which may diverge from the social value of the resource. Where quota markets exist, their prices can serve as a useful cross-check against net present value estimates derived from resource rent approaches (SEEA CF para 5.444--5.452), but should not be treated as the sole basis for monetary asset valuation without careful assessment of market conditions^[41].

3.5.6 Climate Change Adaptation

Climate change is affecting fish stock distribution, productivity, and sustainable yield levels. Ocean Accounts can support climate adaptation by:

• Tracking shifts in stock distribution across spatial accounting units
• Monitoring changes in condition indicators that may signal climate impacts
• Adjusting sustainable yield estimates to account for changing environmental conditions
• Informing adaptive management responses to climate-driven changes^[42]

3.5.7 Community-level Fishery Accounting

The ocean accounting framework can be applied not only at national scale but also at community level to capture the economic contributions of small-scale and subsistence fishing that are often missed in standard economic surveys. The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) developed survey tools and toolkits examining subsistence and recreational supply of ocean-related natural inputs relevant to small-scale fisheries, with a focus on understanding how coastal communities depend on and contribute to ocean resources^[43]. In a complementary effort, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) undertook community-level fisheries accounting work in Baja California, Mexico, demonstrating that accounting principles derived from the SEEA Central Framework and Ocean Accounts methodology could be operationalised at local scales to inform cooperative fisheries management. These initiatives illustrated that structured accounting approaches can render visible the economic value of artisanal and subsistence catches--value that conventional national accounts frequently undercount or omit entirely. By capturing household-level resource flows and linking them to ecosystem condition indicators, community-scale accounts provide a bridge between national statistical frameworks and local management needs. These initiatives originated in the 2015--2019 period, and subsequent developments may have extended or modified the approaches.

Case illustration: Community Fishery Accounts in Baja California (2015--2019)

Work by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) on survey methodologies and toolkits for small-scale fisheries, together with efforts by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) beginning in 2015 in Baja California, Mexico, demonstrated that ocean accounting frameworks can be applied at the community scale. The EDF programme compiled fishery accounts for remote fishing villages, capturing the economic contributions of small-scale and subsistence fishing that are typically missed in standard economic surveys. These efforts highlight the potential for community-level accounts to complement national-level compilations, particularly for capturing non-market and subsistence ocean economy contributions^[44]. The current status of these initiatives should be confirmed, as the original work dates from 2015--2019.

3.6 Data Sources and Compilation Considerations

3.6.1 Primary Data Sources

Compilation of fisheries accounts typically draws on:

Catch and landing statistics: Recorded by fisheries agencies, port authorities, or fish market operators. FAO collects and publishes global capture and aquaculture production data annually through FishStatJ (www.fao.org/fishery/statistics/software/fishstatj)^[45].

Stock assessment reports: Produced by national fisheries research institutions, regional fisheries management organizations (e.g., WCPFC, IOTC, CCSBT for tuna), or international bodies. The RAM Legacy Stock Assessment Database provides standardized stock assessment outputs.

Vessel and licence registries: Providing data on fishing capacity, effort, and fleet composition.

Economic surveys: Dedicated fisheries economic surveys or general business surveys covering fishing enterprises.

Trade statistics: Customs data on fish imports and exports, compiled according to the Harmonized System (HS) commodity classification.

Employment surveys: Labour force surveys or dedicated fisheries employment surveys.

3.6.2 Intergovernmental Fisheries Data Sources

Intergovernmental organisations play a significant role in collecting and harmonising fisheries data across countries. Key active sources and initiatives relevant to compiling ocean accounts for fisheries include^[46]:

• Coordinating Working Party on Fishery Statistics (CWP) -- coordinates global fishery statistical programmes and maintains standards for fishery data collection, processing, and dissemination
• Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA) -- comprehensive bibliographic database covering aquatic science and fisheries literature
• Fisheries and Resources Monitoring System (FIRMS) -- a global partnership that provides access to information on the status and trends of marine resources and fisheries
• FishStatJ -- FAO software for retrieving, analysing, and disseminating fishery and aquaculture statistical time series
• GLOBEFISH -- FAO programme providing analysis and information on world fish trade, including market trends and price data

These initiatives provide foundational data that can support the compilation of physical asset accounts for aquatic resources (see TG-3.1 Asset Accounts) and the derivation of fisheries management indicators.

3.6.3 Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing

IUU fishing presents significant measurement challenges. Following accounting principles, illegal catches should still be recorded as production with income accruing to the fisher^[47]. For catches by non-residents that are illegal (either without licence or exceeding quota), physical removals should be recorded as "uncompensated seizures" to distinguish them from legitimate harvesting by the country's nationals.

Estimates of IUU fishing are inherently uncertain but important for understanding true extraction levels and their impact on stock sustainability. Global IUU catch has been estimated at 11--26 million tonnes annually (Agnew et al., 2009), with significant regional variation.

Countries should develop national IUU estimation approaches appropriate to their data environment and fishery characteristics. Commonly used methods include comparison of reported landings with independent estimates of total removals derived from port sampling, at-sea observer programmes, or vessel monitoring system (VMS) data; stock assessment--based back-calculation, in which the difference between model-estimated total removals and reported catch provides an implied IUU component; trade-based analysis, comparing declared domestic landings with apparent consumption (production plus imports minus exports) to identify discrepancies; and aerial and satellite surveillance data, which can detect unreported fishing activity by matching vessel positions with licence registers. Regardless of the method chosen, IUU estimates should be presented with explicit uncertainty bounds and documented in the metadata accompanying the accounts. Where multiple methods yield different estimates, compilers should report a range and indicate the preferred central estimate^[48].

3.6.4 Subsistence and Recreational Fishing

Fisheries accounts should encompass all harvesting activity, not only commercial operations. Subsistence fishing for household consumption represents production for own final use. Recreational fishing, while not undertaken for commercial purposes, still removes fish from stocks and should be recorded^[49].

These non-commercial catches may require special estimation approaches based on:

• Household surveys with questions on fishing activity and consumption
• Recreational fishing licence data (where licensing exists)
• Creel surveys at popular fishing locations
• Proxy indicators based on boat ownership or coastal population

Small-scale and subsistence fisheries are of particular importance in developing countries and in many GOAP member countries in the Asia-Pacific region, where they may represent a substantial proportion of total catch and provide essential food security and livelihoods for coastal communities. In several Pacific Island States, for example, subsistence and artisanal catches may equal or exceed commercial catches in volume, yet remain largely unreported. Countries compiling fisheries accounts should assess the relative importance of non-commercial catches in their national context and allocate survey resources accordingly. Where comprehensive survey programmes are not feasible, countries may consider periodic benchmark surveys at representative landing sites combined with extrapolation methods, integration of fisheries questions into existing multi-purpose household surveys (such as Household Income and Expenditure Surveys), and use of food balance sheet data and per-capita fish consumption estimates to cross-check catch figures. The FAO Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries provide an international framework that can inform the design of data collection strategies for this sector^[50].

4. Acknowledgements

Authors: Rekam Nusantara Foundation

Reviewers: To be assigned

5. References