Source: website https://www.nafo.int/
- Founded in 1979 as a successor to ICNAF (International Commission of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries) (1949-1978).
- The Convention on Future Multilateral Cooperation in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries came into force on 1 January 1979.
- The headquarters of NAFO is in Halifax, Canada.
- The NAFO Contracting Parties are: Canada, Cuba, Denmark (in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland), European Union (EU), France (in respect of St. Pierre and Miquelon), Iceland, Japan, Norway, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Ukraine and the United States of America.
- NAFO has the following structure: the Commission, Scientific Council and Secretariat. There are subsidiary bodies and working groups to address specific issues in a more detailed way. The subsidiary bodies of the Commission are as follows: Standing Committee on International Control (STACTIC) and Standing Committee on Finance and Administration (STACFAD). STACTIC addresses matters relating to control of fishing activities in the NAFO Regulatory Area. The NAFO Conservation and Enforcement Measures updated annually contain measures to regulate and control fisheries in the NAFO Regulatory Area.
- NAFO regulates fisheries for the following key species: cod, Greenland halibut, redfish, witch flounder, skates, white hake, shrimp, squid.
The Polar Branch participates in:
- annual meetings of NAFO Scientific Council, which evaluates the status of stocks and provides advice to the Commission on conservation and management measures for the stocks;
- annual meetings of NAFO Commission, which establishes conservation and management measures for various stocks for the following year, including total allowable catches (TACs), technical measures to regulate fisheries, fishing efforts, etc.;
- meetings of various NAFO working groups.
More information can be found at: https://www.nafo.int/