Core characteristics of the FiTI

Fisheries management

The FiTI focuses on public access to information for 12 thematic areas of marine capture fisheries, such as fishing licenses, vessel registry, catch data, subsidies and beneficial ownership.

Collective action

Transparency needs trust! This is why the FiTI is implement through National Multi-Stakeholder Groups, equally represented by government, companies and civil society.

Visibility & Usability

Transparency requires a two-sided approach: making data available in the public domain, and ensuring that stakeholders can draw reliable conclusions from it.

Progressive improvement

Countries are not expected to have complete data for every thematic area from the beginning. Instead, public authorities must disclose the information they have, and where important gaps exist, demonstrate improvements over time.

Quality at source

The FiTI does not replace or duplicate existing government systems. Instead, the need for national authorities to develop and strengthen their own systems for collecting and publishing information online is emphasised.

Robust assurance

The FiTI International Board undertakes regular valuations to verify compliance of all participating countries against the FiTI Standard. This covers the provision of FiTI Reports, the meaningful involvement of stakeholders, as well as the impact of the FiTI in the country.

FiTI Standard: Defining for the first time what information on fisheries management should be published online by governments!


The FiTI Standard is an internationally recognised framework that sets clear requirements on what is expected from countries regarding transparency in marine fisheries.
It was developed in a 2-year global consultation process with government representatives from fishing nations, industrial and artisanal fishing entities, civil society and intergovernmental organisations.

News, Updates, Blogs

FiTI advocates for greater transparency in fisheries management at Our Ocean 2023

The Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) was invited to participate in the Our Ocean 2023 Conference, hosted by the Panamanian government. The FiTI Chair, Dr Valeria Merino, noted that throughout the event, speakers and participants from all sectors agreed that collecting, using, and sharing data is indispensable to ensure the future sustainability of marine fisheries.

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TAKING STOCK assessment identifies gaps in fisheries transparency for Panama, shows need to implement the FiTI

02 March 2023. In its latest TAKING STOCK assessment of government transparency in marine fisheries, the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) evaluated the information that Panamanian national authorities make available to the public via government websites. The results clearly demonstrate the country’s modest performance; while certain information is published, the majority of what is required for […]

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United States among top nations regarding transparency of fisheries management, new TAKING STOCK assessment shows

28 February 2023. In its latest TAKING STOCK transparency assessment, the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) evaluated the amount of fisheries information that national authorities in the United States (US) make publicly available via government websites. The assessment shows that the US fisheries sector is characterised by very high levels of public access to information, making […]

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First validation of Seychelles shows ‘meaningful progress’ in implementing the FiTI Standard

22 February 2023. The FiTI International Board has recognised Seychelles’ efforts to implement the FiTI Standard with a score of ‘meaningful progress’ in the first validation of the Indian Ocean archipelago. In its final Compliance Statement, which was published today, the Board congratulated Seychelles for this achievement, which demonstrates that significant aspects of the validation […]

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Ecuador promotes fisheries transparency during 11th SPRFMO Commission Meeting

This Tuesday, 14 February 2023, the multi-stakeholder forum “Transparency for sustainable fisheries management: The FiTI experience in Ecuador” was held during the 11th Commission Meeting of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (COMM11) in Manta, Ecuador. The forum was organised by Ecuador’s Vice-Ministry of Aquaculture and Fisheries, the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) and the […]

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Testimonials

FiTI in numbers:

8

Governments committed to implement the FiTI Standard

5

Annual FiTI Reports published by National Multi-Stakeholder Groups

72

Stakeholders engaged in National Multi-Stakeholder Groups

2

FiTI implementing countries validated for compliance against FiTI Standard

7

transparency briefings (short 'tBriefs') published in English, French, Spanish

9

Country transparency assessments conducted