An historical account of Brazilian public policy on fisheries subsidies

Abstract

This paper presents a historical account of Brazilian public policy on fisheries subsidies, and a discussion of problems and limitations resulting from such policy. From the 1960s to the mid-1980s, public policies led to a great increase in fisheries catch without appropriate consideration for the long-term sustainability of the resources, resulting in declining catches over the years. The goals of current Brazilian public policy on fisheries will not help in reducing overexploitation. This is because these policies are too optimistic about the abundance of fish in Brazil’s EEZ, and are not accompanied by a fisheries management plan that is likely to work.