International Development

Local Vietnam fish market. Most of the seafood the United States imports comes from Asia.

Because fish and other marine wildlife cross national boundaries in all their life history stages, the United States shares living marine resources with other countries.  The way other countries manage these shared marine resources can therefore directly affect the status of fish stocks and protected or endangered species of importance to the United States.  For this reason, successful fisheries management and conservation practices can only be achieved through international cooperation and collaboration.

The United States now imports approximately 85% of our seafood.  Fishermen in the United States are subject to strong and effective conservation and management measures, which may be missing in countries from which we import fisheries products.  The United States has the responsibility to ensure that the fish we consume comes from sustainable, legal sources.

NOAA Fisheries has the authority to engage in international cooperation and development activities with other countries in order to implement the Magnuson-Stevens Act, particularly in the areas of combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and mitigating bycatch of protected living marine resources.  Our international development work builds strategic partnerships with other nations, particularly with developing countries, to promote sustainable and responsible management of fisheries and other relevant marine resources at the national, regional, and global levels.  Learn more about our international development work. 

For questions about ongoing international development projects, please contact  Chris Rogers (christopher.rogers@noaa.gov).