North Macedonia joined the European Fisheries and Aquaculture Advisory Commission (EIFAAC) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) as the 37th member.

The FAO informs that the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Ljupco Nikolovski informed the General Director of the FAO, Qu Dongyu, about the decision.

- The Macedonian fisheries and aquaculture sector is small, but important for the country, with a fish production of about 2.500 tons per year. Aquaculture production is primarily limited to trout and carp species, and takes place in ponds, rivers and lakes.

The Ministry aims to double aquaculture production by 2030 to increase domestic food security in line with the National Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development 2021–2027 and National Biodiversity Strategy with Action Plan (2018–2023) , the announcement from FAO states.

According to Minister Nikolovski, membership provides the opportunity to participate in regional projects for fisheries and aquaculture, access to knowledge and scientific advice, transfer of capacity building and technologies and innovations for aquaculture.

The permanent representative of North Macedonia in FAO, Lidija Popandonova, believes that innovating the aquaculture sector in order to increase the production of food from aquatic origin and its resistance to climate change is a priority for the country.

She expects that EIFAAC experts will help to strengthen the technological capacity of businesses in North Macedonia for aquaculture and fish production in a sustainable way and to restore natural waters with indigenous species.

In the coming years, the 37 members of the Commission will, among other things, cooperate to promote innovation and digitalization and strengthen the environment in rural areas, as well as to support the sustainable management of natural resources and facilitate resilience in the food and agriculture sectors . The work of the European Advisory Commission on Fisheries and Aquaculture should contribute to food security and the reduction of all forms of malnutrition.

EIFAAC was established as a regional fisheries body by the FAO Council in 1957 and is an important intergovernmental forum for cooperation and information exchange on inland fisheries and aquaculture among all European countries. The next EIFAAC session will be hosted by the Government of Croatia in 2024.

- The EIFAAC Steering Committee, Technical and Scientific Committee, members and Secretariat welcome North Macedonia as a new member and look forward to developing strong relations with the country in relation to closed water fisheries and aquaculture, reads the announcement from FAO.