Eleven ASEAN nations belonging to the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC) have agreed to promote the implementation of the Code of Conduct for the Responsible Fisheries in fishing operations, aquaculture, fisheries management, and post harvest practices and trade by the ASEAN and SEAFDEC member countries. Dr. Rolando Platon, head of Philippine-based Aquaculture Department of SEAFDEC and Agriculture Undersecretary Cesar Drilon attended SEAFDEC's four-day Thirty Seventh Council Meeting held in Hanoi, Vietnam, which drafted and endorsed the ASEAN-SEAFDEC regional Guidelines for Responsible Fisheries. Platon said the council recognized that the implementation of the Code in Southeast Asia would play an important role in the improvement of the livelihood and reduction of poverty in small-scale fisheries communities in member-countries.

ASEAN nations approve responsible fisheries code. (2019, April 25). Manila Bulletin, p. 9.