Fisheries management and institutional reform: a European perspective

Symes, D. 2007. Fisheries management and institutional reform: a European perspective. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 64: 779–785. Changes to the institutional frameworks that help shape fisheries policy-making are typically incremental and piecemeal, with governments content to tinker at the edges, but rarely willing to embrace fundamental reform. The present study outlines the nature of institutional frameworks and explores the need to ensure coherence across different scales of governance. Co-management and participative governance are commonly regarded as important recent developments. Although they may well satisfy notions of “good governance”, their ability to deliver better policy, more effective management, and sustainable fisheries is open to question. In the search to improve the efficacy of fisheries management, three key issues are identified: restructuring of co-management organizations, clarification of property rights, and development of an ecosystem-based approach. Finally, attention is drawn to the challenge to fisheries governance posed by moves towards integrated management.