Advancing multispecies fishery management in China: Lessons from international experience

Social-ecological vulnerability and risk of China's marine capture fisheries to climate change

Climate change is a new disrupter to global fisheries systems and their governance frameworks. It poses a pressing management challenge, particularly in China, which is renowned as the world's largest fishing country and seafood producer. As climate change continues to intensify in the region and climate awareness grows within the country's national policy, the need to understand China's fisheries' resilience to the escalating climate crisis becomes paramount. In this study, we conduct an interdisciplinary analysis to assess the vulnerability and risk of China's marine capture fisheries in response to climate change. This study employs a spatially explicit, indicator-based approach with a coupled social-ecological framework, focusing on 67 species and 11 coastal regions. By integrating diverse sets of climatic, ecological, economic, societal, and governance indicators and information, we elucidate the factors that could hinder climate adaptation, including a limited understanding of fish early life stages, uncertainty in seafood production, unequal allocation and accessibility of resources, and inadequate consideration of inclusive governance and adaptive management. Our results show that species, which have managed to survive the stress of overfishing, demonstrate a remarkable ability to adapt to climate change. However, collapsing stocks such as large yellow croaker face a high risk due to the synergistic effects of inherent biological traits and external management interventions. We emphasize the imperative to build institutional, scientific, and social capacity to support fisheries adaptation. The scientific insights provided by this study can inform fisheries management decisions and promote the operationalization of climate-resilient fisheries in China and other regions.

China's belt and road initiative (BRI) under the vision of 'maritime community with a shared future' and its impacts on global fisheries governance

'Maritime Community with a Shared Future' is the broad vision through which China aims to lead the global fisheries governance. This research has been motivated by China's ambition of equating its maritime development goals with sustainable development goal - 14 (Life Below Water). Through this research, the influential role of China in 'global fisheries governance' has been put through an 'ocean governance mechanism at various levels (national, regional, and international). Therefore, China's role in 'global ocean and fisheries' are discussed side-by-side, focusing on and supporting a better understanding of China's potential challenges and opportunities in world fisheries. The role of China in global and regional fisheries governance has been critically analysed throughout the discussion. It is also discussed how China plays its part in Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) and how this role-playing can be utilised through the Belt and Road initiative (BRI) for effective governance, conservation and preservation of marine fisheries. The scope of China's national ocean and fisheries legislation is framed to support China's stance in leading global fisheries governance. The conclusion followed the discussion in descending order suggesting ocean and fisheries governance improvement and appropriate advocacy options available to China.