Over the last 5 years the debate about marine fisheries has focused on:
• conflicting aims of fisheries development policies;
• over-exploitation of fisheries resources in many parts of the world and the associated overcapitalisation and subsidies within the fishery;
• the need to develop efficient and effective fisheries management systems to address local and national goals, and to avoid illegal fisheries and international conflicts;
• access rights to common-pool resources, particularly for developing countries and the poor;
• change in the post-harvest sector, especially the decline of traditional processing, increasing demand and static supply, quality standards and trade (especially tariff and non-tariff barriers and the potential role of WTO regulations);
• the need to create alternative income opportunities that provide real options for reducing pressure on already depleted resources, and thus linking into wider coastal livelihood strategies;
• co-ordination among sectors and development agencies to ensure harmonisation of policies and policy implementation (e.g., EU Common Fisheries Policy with Development Policy).