Fishery resources are an excellent source of food as well as a driver of job creation in the coastal areas. According to the FAO, supply of fish for food from both capture fisheries (marine and inland) and aquaculture currently provides about 17% of the total supply of animal protein. At the same time, international trade of fish and fishery products has expanded significantly in the last decades, with about 36% of the production being exported. These statistics however do not reveal the concern about the current situation of fishery resources. If exploitation of these resources is to be both stable and sustainable in the long term, better management is required.
In order to obtain and interpret management-supporting data, experts with a multidisciplinary background are needed, that will address the issue from diverse perspectives such as biology, economics, sociology or law. In this way, they will be able to valuate and assess fishery resources and propose management measures through different techniques such as mathematical simulations, statistics, surveys, assessments or negotiation. Therefore, it is of maximum interest to train these experts so they can advise stakeholders in the diverse world of fisheries: different administrations (local, regional, state or supranational), fishermen (artisanal, semi-industrial or industrial), social groups (shipowners, trade unions, consumers, processors, fish farmers, etc.).
Furthermore, given the international scope of the marine environment, the need arises to establish a common method and language to be used between experts of the different countries sharing fisheries. To train specialists that can contribute to facilitating the search for cooperative measures from their respective countries to benefit all stakeholders is undoubtedly a great challenge that this Master addresses.
The MSc in Sustainable Fisheries Management is jointly organized by the University of Alicante (UA), the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment (MAPAMA), through the General Secretariat of Fisheries (SGP), and the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM), through the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Zaragoza (IAMZ). Pending final confirmation, the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) will also be part of the organization. Furthermore, the Master counts on the collaboration of the FAO Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
The Master is developed over two academic years on a full-time basis [120 credits, following the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS)], and is structured in two parts.
The first part of the Master (60 ECTS) is professionally oriented and is held in Alicante, in the Faculty of Science of the UA, from 10 October 2017 to 15 June 2018. The programme is delivered by highly specialized lecturers from the organizing institutions and distinguished guest lecturers belonging to international institutions and universities, research centres, administrations and private bodies from various countries.
The second part of the Master (60 ECTS) constitutes a period of initiation to research or to professional activity in which participants work on their Final Master Project (Master thesis). This part is conducted at the University of Alicante or other collaborating institutions and will last for 10 months, starting in September 2018. The first period for the defence of the thesis will be July 2019 and the second period will be September 2019.