The World Trade Organization (WTO) has opened a second round for submitting proposals to its Fisheries Fund.
The second opportunity to submit proposals to the WTO's "Fish Fund" was opened on February 2 of this year. This opportunity is open to developing and least-developed countries that have ratified the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. This is an opportunity to apply for financial assistance for projects aimed at providing the necessary support to implement the agreement.
In this newly opened round, eligible WTO member countries will have the opportunity to submit proposals via the application portal before April 24.
This time, the "Fish Fund" is set to provide two types of grants. These are a 'Project Preparation' grant of up to USD 50,000 for conducting studies required to implement the fisheries agreement, and a 'Project Grant' of up to USD 300,000 for projects aimed at implementing specific provisions of the agreement.
During the first call for proposals, a total of 26 projects worth USD 2.9 million were approved at the 'Fish Fund Steering Committee' meeting held in November 2025.
The WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies was adopted at the 12th Ministerial Conference held in 2022. The agreement entered into force on September 15, 2025. To date, 116 WTO member countries have accepted the agreement. The WTO's "Fish Fund" was established in collaboration with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the World Bank. Full authority to disburse funds under the 'Fish Fund' has been granted since September 15, 2025.
To date, the total amount of funds received, committed, and pledged to this fund exceeds USD 18 million. Members that have contributed to the fund include Australia, Canada, the European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Liechtenstein, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.
