The present study analyses the main supply-side and demand-side constraints that undermine the growth and development potential of the fishery sector of LDCs, with a particular focus on international food quality and safety standards in major importing countries. The study presents evidence from six case studies – Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Comoros, Mozambique, Myanmar and Uganda – and provides policy conclusions and recommendations for action by stakeholders in LDCs and their development partners. The study argues that, if nationally or regionally imposed standards are harmonized, simplified and realigned with internationally agreed standards, and if LDCs receive robust targeted technical and financial support to build their capabilities to meet such standards, there is considerable scope for many LDCs to become successful exporters of fishery products. There is, equally, a need to establish in LDCs pragmatic and forward-looking trade policies that emphasize tapping the potential of their fishery sectors for the diversification of exports. Fishery polices should be fully integrated into and made consistent with overall trade and national development strategies (UNCTAD, 2016).
