Glossary

Term	Acronym	Definition
Canal passage		A recorded movement through a canal by a vessel on the combined IUU vessel list.
Combined IUU vessel list		A compilation of data on IUU vessels listed by RFMOs.
Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources	CCAMLR	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) managing the marine living resources in waters surrounding Antarctica.
Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna	CCSBT	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO). Objective is to ensure, through appropriate management, the conservation and optimal utilisation of the global Southern Bluefin Tuna.
Compliance Agreement		1993 FAO Agreement to Promote Compliance With International Conservation and Management Measures by Fishing Vessels on the High Seas.
Conservation and Management Measure	CMM	Conservation and Management Measure adopted by an RFMO. Some RFMOs also call them conservation measure (CM) or conservation and enforcement measure (CEM).
Contracting Party	CP	A country that has signed, or otherwise agrees to abide by the terms of, an international agreement.
Cooperating Non-Member	CNM	Cooperating Non-Member – includes Cooperating Non-Parties, Cooperating Non-Contracting Parties and Cooperating Fishing Entities.
Entry into force		The point at which an international agreement become binding.
Exclusive Economic Zone	EEZ	A zone under national jurisdiction (up to 200 nautical miles wide) declared in line with provisions of the 1982 U.N. Convention of the Law of the Sea, within which the coastal State has the right to explore and exploit, and the responsibility to conserve and manage living and nonliving resources.
FAO Model Scheme on Port State Measures		The Model Scheme on Port State Measures to Combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing – endorsed by COFI in 2005.
Fish stocks		Describes target or byproduct species at the most general level. In managing fisheries, we seek to manage the take of fish stocks to ensure that there is a balance between the long-term sustainability of the stock and the amount taken by fishers over a given period, such as a fishing year.
Fisheries support vessels		A vessel which support fishing activities, it includes fish carriers, bunker vessels, motherships and net boats.
Fishing vessel		A vessel used to catch and transport fish.
Flag of convenience	FOC	Also known as Flag of Non Compliance. Pertains to cases in which a vessel is registered in a State other than its country of beneficial ownership. This could be for reasons of cost or convenience and possibly, in the case of fishing vessels, for lower levels management and enforcement of domestic and international arrangements.
Flag or flag State		The State where a vessel is registered and flagged.
Foreign fishing vessel		Any fishing vessel other than a vessel of the coastal State.
General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean	GFCM	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO). Objectives are to promote the development, conservation, rational management and best utilization of living marine resources, as well as the sustainable development of aquaculture in the Mediterranean, Black Sea and connecting waters.
High seas		Areas of ocean beyond national jurisdictions, up to 200 miles wide.
Highly migratory species		Marine species whose life cycle includes lengthy migrations, usually through the EEZs of two or more countries as well as the high seas. This term usually denotes tuna and tuna-like species, marlins and swordfish.
Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing	IUU	Fishing undertaken in national waters and the high seas that is contrary to management and reporting arrangements where they are in place, or fishing that is undertaken where no arrangements exist, with little or no regard for the sustainability of fish stocks.
IMO Number		A unique identification number allocated by the IMO to all merchant vessels over 100 gross tons and more than 20,000 fishing vessels; it cannot be changed during the lifetime of a vessel.
Indian Ocean Tuna Commission	IOTC	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) that manages tuna and tuna-like species in the Indian Ocean and adjacent seas.
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission	IATTC	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) responsible for the conservation and management of fisheries for tuna and other species taken by tuna-fishing vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas	ICCAT	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) responsible for the conservation of tuna and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent seas including the Mediterranean.
International Maritime Organization	IMO	A specialized agency of the United Nations. Its objective is to develop and maintain a comprehensive regulatory framework for shipping; its remit today includes safety, environmental concerns, legal matters, technical co-operation, maritime security and the efficiency of shipping. It has a limited role with respect to fishing vessels.
International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing	IPOA-IUU	Voluntary instrument developed by the FAO within the framework of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries
International Radio Call Sign	IRCS	Issued by the flag State to a vessel.
Landing		To unload fish (products) from a vessel onto the land. First entry point of fish (products) into market/trade.
Lloyd’s Register – Fairplay	LRF	LRF manages the IMO ship identification numbering scheme on behalf of the IMO and maintains details of ships on order and under construction, the current trading fleet and ships that are in casualty, lost or broken up. It also provides online information services for the shipping industry, including Sea-web.
Lloyd’s MIU		An online provider of global maritime information, with detailed and up-to-date data on the movement and ownership of some 120,000 vessels. Also known as Sea-searcher.
Longliner		A fishing vessel that uses a single line (sometimes up to 30 kilometers long) with baited branch lines at regular intervals to catch fish – often tuna and other pelagic fish.
Member		Member or Contracting Party of an RFMO, including a Member of an Extended Commission (where applicable).
Merchant vessel		A commercial vessel used to transport goods.
Monitoring, control and surveillance	MCS	Defined by the FAO as activities undertaken by the fishery enforcement system to ensure compliance with fishery regulations
Movement		The recorded movement of a vessel on the combined IUU vessel list in visiting a port or passing through a canal or strait.
Movement file		A database of the movement of all vessels on the combined IUU vessel list over the period of the study.
Nongovernmental Organisation	NGO	Any organisation that is not a part of federal, provincial, territorial or municipal government. Usually refers to nonprofit organizations involved in a range of activities.
North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission	NEAFC	Regional Fisheries Management Organization (RFMO) that manages demersal fisheries (species that live on the seabed) in the Northeast Atlantic.
Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation	NAFO	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) that manages fish stocks that are outside Canada’s 200-mile limit, straddle the line or are of mainly foreign interest.
Online databases		Those consulted in this study: Lloyd’s MIU, Sea-web and shipspotting.com.
Port State		A State with maritime boundaries and ports that allow access to foreign vessels.
Port State Measures Agreement	PSMA	The Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing; being negotiated during 2008 and 2009 under the auspices of the FAO and was adopted by the FAO Conference in November 2009.
Port visit		A visit by a vessel to a port, including a foreign fishing vessel or a merchant vessel flagged to another country.
Post State Measures		Requirements established or interventions undertaken by port States which a foreign fishing vessel must comply with. Among these are measures against IUU-listed vessels such as denial of entry into port, denial of transshipment and/or landing, and denial of provision of port services which we have focused on in this study.
Purse seiner		A fishing vessel that uses a purse seine net (a large net that is set around a school of fish, then drawn together at the surface and underneath the fish to trap them). Frequently used to catch high-volume fish, such as skipjack tuna.
Ratification		The act by a country/state to make an international agreement official, being the next step after the signature.
Reefer		A vessel used to transport perishable commodities that require temperature control, such as fruit, meat, fish, vegetables and dairy products.
Refrigerated cargo vessel		Similar to a reefer but may also include refrigerated container vessels designed to carry containerized loads in which each container is a refrigerated unit.
Regional Fisheries Management Organisation	RFMO	Inter-governmental organisation that co-ordinates efforts to manage fisheries in a particular region.
Sea-web		Online database that provides comprehensive global port visit data, including real-time reports from 165 countries, as well as coverage of ship and ownership details. Part of Lloyd’s Register – Fairplay.
shipspotting.com		Online database that contains the world’s largest ship photo library, with some 700,000 images submitted by members. Images of vessels include the date and place the image was taken, as well as who submitted the image.
South East Atlantic Fisheries Organisation	SEAFO	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) that oversees the management of fisheries in the Southeast Atlantic.
Strait passage		A recorded movement through a strait by a vessel on the combined IUU vessel list.
Study/research period		The period covered by this study was 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2009.
The Committee on Fisheries	COFI	The Committee is an inter-governmental forum (U.N. body) of member governments and other organizations where major international fisheries and aquaculture problems and issues are examined and recommendations developed to address these issues.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations	FAO	This organization leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving developed and developing countries, the FAO acts as a neutral forum in which nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and debate policy. The FAO is also a source of knowledge and information.
Transshipment		The transfer from one vessel to another of fish products, whether at sea or in port. A transshipment point is where fishery products are brought together for onward shipment.
Trawler		A fishing vessel that uses a trawl net (a large net, held open by trawl doors, that skims across the seabed herding fish into the net as it passes). This method typically targets demersal fish species but can also be used to target fish in the water column, where it is known as midwater trawling.
U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea	UNCLOS	International agreement that resulted from the third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III). The Law of the Sea Convention defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world's oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment and the management of marine natural resources. Adopted in 1982, came into effect in 1994.
U.N. Fish Stock Agreement	UNFSA	The Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 Relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks.
U.N. General Assembly	UNGA	One of the five principle organs of the United Nations.
Vessel journey		Information on the movement of a vessel on the combined IUU vessel list.
Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission	WCPFC	Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) that oversees management of fisheries for tuna and similar species in the Western Pacific.