Arctic Council Working Group

CTA Arctic Webinar

PAME successfully convened a webinar on 4 June 2026 dedicated to the 2012 Cape Town Agreement (CTA) and its significance for fishing vessel safety in the Arctic and beyond.

The webinar, moderated by maritime expert Michael Kingston, brought together experts from the fishing industry, international maritime organizations, national authorities, NGO's to share knowledge and experience ahead of the Agreement's entry into legal force in February 2027.Minister Eyjólfur Ármannsson delivered an opening address on behalf of Iceland, as did Ana Nunez for Spain and Masud Karim for IMO.

The webinar agenda is available here and a list of registrations here - with 90 registrations from 27 countries and international organizations and NGO's. Representation spanned Arctic States and their authorities — as well as major observer states such as Spain, the United Kingdom, South Korea and France.

The Cape Town Agreement

The Cape Town Agreement is an international treaty establishing the first mandatory global safety standards for the design, construction, and equipment of commercial fishing vessels of 24 metres and over. Having reached its official ratification threshold in February 2026, the Agreement will enter into legal force in February 2027 — a landmark moment that will extend to fishers legally binding safety protections and vessel inspection regimes long enjoyed by the merchant shipping industry.Fishing is one of the most dangerous professions in the world, with an estimated 80 lives lost per 100,000 fishers on average. Globally, around 45,000 fishing vessels of 24 metres and over operate in marine waters, crewed by a workforce far larger than that of the commercial shipping sector, yet subject to far fewer mandatory safety obligations.

The PAME Cape Town Agreement project page is available here.

ADDRESSES AND PRESENTATIONS