09 Mar Sernapesca, SECOS, and Stanford’s Center for Ocean Solutions Strengthen Strategic Management to Combat Illegal Fishing in Chile

With the aim of advancing toward more effective, data-driven compliance management, a workshop titled “Comprehensive Risk Assessment of Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing in Chile: Toward Compliance Management” was held in late January in Valparaíso.

The meeting, which brought together 24 experts from Chile and the United States, marks a new milestone in the collaboration launched in 2024 between the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca), the SECOS Millennium Institute in Coastal Socio-Ecology, and Stanford University’s Center for Ocean Solutions (COS).

The opening session was led by Sernapesca National Director María Soledad Tapia Almonacid, who highlighted the importance of initiatives such as this:

“Illegal fishing has become increasingly complex in recent years, particularly with the emergence of organized crime. That is why we must be strong and determined in combating these chains that cause significant harm to fisheries and to the sustainability of our fishery and aquaculture resources. Meetings like this are essential, as they help generate indicators that allow us to adjust our strategies to address this highly complex problem.”

Elizabeth Selig, researcher at Stanford’s Center for Ocean Solutions, emphasized Chile’s leadership in the use of spatial information and reaffirmed the institution’s commitment to continuing the collaborative project.

Meanwhile, Pablo Ortiz, Deputy Director of Fisheries at Sernapesca and an active coordinator of the initiative, explained:

“This project is key because it helps us develop a framework to understand and tackle problems such as illegal fishing. Although it currently focuses on three fisheries, we believe it can become a model that can be replicated in other regions and sectors.”

Over two full days of working sessions in Valparaíso, participants conducted an in-depth analysis of indicators used to categorize different risk profiles of artisanal fishing vessels currently equipped with VMS (Vessel Monitoring Systems). The objective was to identify improvements in enforcement strategies to address IUU fishing in three important Chilean fisheries: jack mackerel, Patagonian toothfish, and sardine and anchovy.

Rodrigo Oyanedel, researcher at the SECOS Millennium Institute and director of MAR FUTURA, highlighted the value of collaboration between academia and the public sector:

“What we achieved with this workshop was to strengthen an innovative model of knowledge co-production, where Sernapesca and SECOS have worked closely together, while also bringing in a partner such as Stanford.”

According to Oyanedel, these efforts help translate global projects into local-scale applications:

“They make them more operational and open opportunities for public institutions and the country to build collaborative interactions with actors who promote sustainability in fisheries, from a more quantitative and scientific perspective.”

The workshop also included the participation of SECOS Director Stefan Gelcich and Nicolás Segovia, data manager and researcher at the ANID center, who noted:

“The opportunity to work directly with inspectors, analysts, and staff responsible for areas related to landing data and satellite positioning allows us to deeply understand how these datasets are generated and how to communicate them properly. For us as an institute, this helps us formulate better research questions and develop more effective strategies to support the service in its enforcement efforts.”

During the workshop, the team of experts developed risk typologies based on the synergy of multiple indicators and units of analysis such as the vessel, the skipper, and the vessel owner. One of the most significant findings was that risk indicators vary substantially between fisheries and even in how they are implemented across regions.

In light of this, participants identified the need to develop a standardized national enforcement protocol that, at the same time, allows flexibility to adapt to the local realities of each fishery.

Looking ahead, the project—already integrating satellite monitoring system (VMS) data and landing records—will focus on building a compliance management framework for Chile, including the automation of risk profiles by fishery type and tailored to each region.