Central Government approves India’s accession to Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA)

The Central Government has approved India’s accession to the Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA), transitioning from a Cooperating Non-Contracting Party to a full Contracting Party. Following the December 2025 Guidelines for High Sea Fisheries, this step provides a regional framework to expand India’s fishing fleet into international waters, secure legitimate rights for sustainable harvesting of high-value marine resources like squids, toothfish, and alfonsino, and advance India's Blue Economy. The accession enables India to participate fully in SIOFA's decision-making bodies, Scientific Committee, and Compliance Committee, collaborate on scientific research, combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, and engage in the High Seas Boarding and Inspection (HSBI) Scheme to strengthen coastal security.