Can we improve the Scientific Committee’s ability to provide unequivocal management advice on fish stocks in the Convention Area?

An outline is provided on data and analyses which would be required to improve the knowledge of the stocks and improve the Scientific Committee’s ability to provide less controversial management advoice. However, a level of uncertainty higher than in fish stock assessment in other parts of the World Ocean (e.g. the North Atlantic) has to be accepted and to be taken into account for fisheries management. As a result. advice provided by the WG FSA can rarely be unequivocal, albeit it has to be considered as ‘the best scientific evidence currently available’.