🗞️ Why in News
On July 20, 2026, India formally deposited its Instrument of Acceptance of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies (AFS), becoming the 123rd member to ratify the pact. Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal handed the instrument to WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in Geneva.
What the Agreement Does
The Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies is a landmark multilateral rulebook because it is the first WTO agreement with an environmental-sustainability objective at its core. Rather than being purely a trade-liberalisation deal, it links global trade rules to the health of the world’s oceans and fish stocks.
The agreement prohibits three broad categories of harmful subsidies:
| Prohibited subsidy | What it targets |
|---|---|
| IUU fishing support | Subsidies for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing |
| Overfished stocks | Subsidies for fishing stocks that are already overfished |
| Unregulated high seas | Subsidies for fishing in the unregulated high seas |
By curbing the flow of public money into these activities, the AFS aims to reduce the global overcapacity and overfishing that have pushed a large share of marine fish stocks beyond biologically sustainable limits.
The Journey to Force
The agreement was adopted at the 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) in Geneva in June 2022. Under WTO rules it needed acceptance by two-thirds of the membership to take effect. That threshold was crossed, and the agreement entered into force on 15 September 2025. The WTO itself is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
India’s Negotiating Posture
India, one of the world’s largest fish producers and home to a vast small-scale fishing community, has approached the negotiations with the interests of its traditional and artisanal fishers front and centre. India’s core demands have been:
- Stronger special and differential treatment (S&DT) for developing and least-developed countries, recognising their limited historical role in depleting global fish stocks.
- Longer transition periods so that poor fishing communities are not penalised while they build capacity.
- Robust protection for small and subsistence fishers who fish within a country’s own waters for livelihood and food security.
- Tighter curbs on large distant-water fishing fleets that operate far from home shores and account for the bulk of global overcapacity.
India’s stand reflects a “polluter pays” logic in reverse: countries that subsidised industrial-scale fishing for decades should shoulder the deepest cuts, while nations whose fishers operate at subsistence scale deserve policy space.
Balancing Sustainability and the Blue Economy
For India the agreement sits at the intersection of three priorities: protecting fisher livelihoods and food security, conserving marine ecosystems, and growing the blue economy. Fisheries support millions of livelihoods along India’s long coastline and are a significant source of nutrition and export earnings. New Delhi has argued that sustainability and development are complementary, not opposed, provided the rules leave room for equitable growth.
Unfinished Business
The current AFS covers the prohibited-subsidy categories, but a second wave of negotiations on subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing remains under discussion. India continues to press that any future disciplines must embed generous developing-country flexibilities before it accepts binding cuts on support to its own fishers.
UPSC Relevance
GS Paper 2: International institutions and agreements; the WTO and India’s role in multilateral trade negotiations; the pursuit of national interest through developing-country coalitions.
GS Paper 3: Marine resources and conservation; the blue economy; sustainable development and the environment-trade interface.
Prelims pointers:
- The AFS was adopted at MC12 (Geneva, June 2022) and entered into force on 15 September 2025.
- It is the first WTO agreement with an environmental-sustainability objective.
- IUU stands for Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing.
- India is the 123rd member to deposit its Instrument of Acceptance; the WTO is headquartered in Geneva.
Mains question: “The WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies marks a shift from pure trade liberalisation towards embedding sustainability in trade rules.” Discuss, with reference to India’s negotiating priorities as a developing coastal nation.
📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia
- The WTO was established in 1995 as the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, 1947) and now has over 160 members.
- The Ministerial Conference is the WTO’s highest decision-making body and meets roughly every two years.
- Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria is the WTO’s first woman and first African Director-General.
- Special and Differential Treatment (S&DT) provisions give developing and least-developed countries flexibilities such as longer implementation periods and technical assistance.
- India’s flagship fisheries scheme is the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), launched in 2020 to promote a sustainable and inclusive fisheries sector.
Sources: WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies (official), Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, The Hindu Business Line report on India depositing its Instrument of Acceptance (July 2026).
Source: India Joins the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies — Ujiyari.com | Free UPSC & State PCS Current Affairs
