SAVE THE DATE: ICES-FAO WGFTFB23 (Cochin, India, 13-17 Feb 2023)

During the recent FAO Committee on Fisheries meeting (COFI35), interest in co-hosting WGFTFB23 was communicated by the government of India and today we are now able to confirm this.

The agreed WGFTFB23 dates and location are as follows:

• dates 13-17 February 2023
• location, Cochin, India

The meeting is being planned as being primarily a physical one. 

If necessary, online participation will also be considered and confirmed at a later date.

Please block your calendars and initiate necessary travel requests. An information note with confirmed venue details, accommodation recommendations and visa requirements will follow ASAP.  In the following weeks a more formal meeting invite along with key dates for meeting preparations and contributions will be circulated.

As co-hosts, FAO will work with India’s Department of Fisheries of the Ministry and with Bay of Bengal Programme – Inter-Governmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO) to organize this meeting.  This will be the first physical WGFTFB meeting in three years and we sincerely hope that as many members as possible are able to join and help make this upcoming meeting and symposium a huge success.  Additionally, this will be the first time a WGFTFB meeting to be held in Southern Asia, which is a great achievement in itself, providing an opportunity to collaborate with fisheries technicians and scientists from both India and the wider Asian region.

Cochin (also known as Kochi) is a city in southwest India’s coastal Kerala state. This is a beautiful region and offers the possibility for meeting participants who may have the time to stay some extra days and enjoy some tourism. We hope to see as many of you as possible present at the meeting and look forward to working with you and BOBP-IGO to make this a memorable and fruitful meeting and symposium for all concerned.

Please direct any questions to chairs@wgftfb.org and Jon.Lansley@fao.org

Best regards,

The WGFTFB chairs: Jon Lansley, Antonello Sala, and Daniel Stepputtis