Deep cuts in Argentina’s public sector could harm sustainable fishing, warns CeDePesca

CeDePesca, a non-governmental organization based in Buenos Aires, Argentina, that aims to help Latin American fisheries implement more sustainable practices, has raised concerns about the sustainability of the Argentine fishing sector.

One of the main reasons why CeDePesca raised the alarm is that the national government recently implemented deep cuts in the country’s public sector.

Argentine President Javier Milei took office in December 2023 promising to privatize many state sectors and use a “chainsaw” on public spending in an attempt to tame rampant inflation and high public spending in the country.

Milea’s efforts appear to have paid off in the first three months of 2024. In the first quarter of 2024, Argentina recorded a positive fiscal balance equivalent to 0.2%. GDP, complemented by a favorable trade balance. Meanwhile, Central Bank reserves increased by $6.5 billion (€6.1 billion), putting the country on track to meet the targets agreed with the International Monetary Fund of achieving a primary surplus equivalent to 2 percent of GDP.

However, the cuts resulted in mass layoffs in government institutions. In particular, CeDePesca condemned the mass layoffs at the Undersecretariat for Fisheries and at the National Institute for Fisheries Research and Development (INIDEP), where more than 30 scientific, technical and administrative staff did not have their contracts renewed.

According to CeDePesca, public management has played a key role in the recovery and sustainability of fisheries in Argentina, which now fears that without the right staff, both goals will quickly be realized.

“If the research system that provides information crucial to decisions on allowable catches is relaxed, and the system of surveillance, control, enforcement and sanctions is relaxed, they will return to the days when resources were overexploited,” CeDePesca said in a statement.

Elsewhere, a non-governmental organization also expressed concerns about …