Privacy Statement

Composition of the Technical Unit

1. The Technical Unit shall be the permanent Secretariat of the Mechanism and shall be adequately provided with the managerial, technical, scientific and support staff to enable

it to discharge the mandate of the Mechanism.

2. The Technical Unit shall comprise a Director, a Deputy Director and such other technical and administrative staff as may be necessary for the fulfillment of the functions of the Mechanism.

3. The Director shall be the Chief Executive Officer of the Mechanism and shall exercise full responsibility for all aspects of the work of the Mechanism.

4. The Director shall be appointed by the Ministerial Council on the recommendation of the Forum and shall serve for a period of three years and be eligible for reappointment.

5. The Director shall report annually to the Ministerial Council on the work of the Mechanism.

6. The Director shall be assisted by a Deputy Director who shall also be appointed by the Ministerial Council on the recommendation of the Forum.

7. The other staff of the Technical Unit shall be appointed by the Director.

8. In the appointment of the staff of the Technical Unit, due consideration shall be given to the principle of equitable geographical representation.

9. The officials of the Technical Unit shall enjoy the status of international public servants whose loyalty shall be to the Mechanism. Members and Associate Members of the Mechanism undertake to respect the status of the officials of the Technical Unit.

Functions of the Technical Unit

In the discharge of its functions, the Technical Unit shall:

(a) provide technical, consultative and advisory services to Member States in the development, assessment, management and conservation of marine and other aquatic resources and, on request, in the discharge of any obligations arising from bilateral and other international instruments;

(b) support and enhance the institutional capacity of Member States in fisheries’ areas such as:

(i) policy formulation;

(ii) economics and planning;

(iii) registration and licensing systems;

(iv) information management;

(v) resource monitoring, assessment and management;

(vi) education and awareness building;

(vii) harvest and post-harvest technologies;

(c) encourage, support and, as appropriate, provide effective regional representation at relevant international fora;

(d) collect and provide relevant data on fisheries resources, including sharing, pooling and information exchange;

(e) promote the conduct of trade in fish and fish products according to applicable agreements;

(f) act as the central co-ordinating body for the Mechanism;

(g) serve as the Secretariat to the Ministerial Council and the Forum;

(h) collaborate with national fisheries authorities;

(i) formulate the Work Programme, prepare and submit the Budget of the Mechanism to the Forum;

(j) implement the Work Programme recommended by the Forum and approved by the Ministerial Council, including the preparation of such technical and scientific papers as may be required;

(k) provide management and development advice and assistance, particularly in the areas of co-ordination, communication and technical scientific operations;

(l) establish, in consultation with the Member States, and where appropriate and approved by the Ministerial Council, a network of relationships comprising non-CARICOM States as well as CARICOM and non-CARICOM organisations, bodies and institutions whose work and interest coincide with that of the Mechanism;

(m) develop projects for execution both in the Member States and regionally;

(n) seek and mobilise financial and other resources in support of the functions of the Mechanism;

(o) represent the Mechanism or, at the request of any Member State or group of Member States, represent them at meetings of international bodies and organisations which are concerned with fisheries in the Caribbean and whose objectives and activities coincide with those of the Mechanism;

(p) receive applications for Associate Membership or Observer Status and make recommendations in respect of such applications to the Forum;

(q) address urgent or ad hoc requests outside of the regular Work Programme presented by Member States;

(r) collaborate with the Executive Committee between meetings of the Forum in the execution of its functions;

(s) recommend to the Forum the staff regulations of the Mechanism.

The Executive Committee

1. There shall be established at the first regular session of the Forum an Executive Committee of the Forum which shall comprise [seven] Members, of whom [five] shall be Members of the Mechanism and two (2) Associate Members.

2. The Director of the Technical Unit shall be an ex-officio Member of the Executive Committee.

3. The members of the Executive Committee shall be elected annually. The Chairman of the Executive Committee shall be elected from among the Members of the Mechanism.

4. Decisions of the Executive Committee shall be reached by a majority of the Members present and voting. In the event of a tie, the Chairman shall exercise a casting vote.

5. The Executive Committee shall function as necessary between meetings of the Forum using, as appropriate, modern communication facilities, and shall keep the Forum

informed of its activities.

The Ministerial Council

1. Each Member of the Mechanism shall nominate a Minister of Fisheries to represent it on the Ministerial Council and such representative shall have one vote.

2. The Ministerial Council shall meet in regular session once a year and in such special sessions as may be necessary to perform its functions.

3. The Ministerial Council shall determine the policy of the Mechanism. In particular, the Ministerial Council shall:

(a) promote the efficient management, conservation and development of shared, straddling and highly migratory marine and other aquatic resources of the Caribbean Region through attainment of competence over the resources and through co-operation with competent organisations as the case may be;

(b) develop and maintain relations with national, sub-regional and regional institutions and bodies and international institutions and organisations the work of which have an impact on the fisheries within the Region;

(c) promote and facilitate human resource training and development in the fisheries sub-sector at the professional, technical and vocational levels in Member States;

(d) promote and support programmes designed to establish, facilitate and strengthen fisheries research, including the acquisition and sharing of relevant data in Member States;

(e) promote and encourage technical co-operation in the fisheries sub-sector, including technology transfer, information exchange and networking among States of the Caribbean Region and beyond;

(f) encourage co-operation among the Member States in order to avoid disputes or to resolve them in a peaceful manner;

(g) support efforts aimed at ensuring safe, healthy and fair working and living conditions for fishers and fish workers;

(h) consider the annual reports and make decisions in response to recommendations and requests from the Forum;

(i) approve the Budget, Annual Audited Accounts and Procurement Procedures of the Mechanism and Strategic Plan and Work Programme of the Technical Unit;

(j) appoint the Director and Deputy Director of the Technical Unit;

(k) receive and consider policy proposals from the Forum;

(l) approve co-operative arrangements proposed by the Forum;

(m) approve recommendations for States or Territories to be admitted as Associate Members;

(n) approve recommendations for groups, institutions and bodies whose work contribute to the work of the Mechanism to be admitted to the Forum, as Observers;

(o) review the work of the Technical Unit;

(p) submit annual reports to the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) and the Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR).

4. Subject to the provisions of this Article and Article 18, the Ministerial Council shall determine its own rules of procedure.

The Mechanism is composed of:

(a) The Ministerial Council;

(b) The Caribbean Fisheries Forum (supported by The Executive Committee); and

(c) The Secretariat (Technical Unit)

Other CRFM Partners include:

• OSPESCA
• Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (Dominican Republic)