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A precedent for onboard observation of vessels already exists. In sections 201 and 403 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the United States has specified provisions which state requires that craft must have onboard observers for fishing expeditions within the EEZits exclusive economic zone. These observers are federal employees, with formal training in "collecting and analyzing the information necessary for the conservation and management (of fisheries)" "science and statistical analysis," and "basic vessel safety" (NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, 2007).
The EU also suggests onboard observers, but currently these observers are not always mandatory and are paid for by the fishermen themselves and not by the government, creating a conflict of interest. We propose creating programs, in states most effected by this unemployment issue (not on an international scale, however, because not all countries will be affected equally by the fallout of fishery unemployment), that mandate onboard observers for the remaining fishing vessels. This program should be run through the national government so that no conflict of interest arises. In a report on the ACP-EU fisheries, the CTA and Commonwealth Secretariat suggested a perfect model for the program: "On board observer programmes should be compulsory (ensuring that no possibilities exist for circumvention). Observers should be paid through a public fund (to which EU ship owners should contribute); and not directly by the boat owner. Observers should be qualified to the same level of competence ("brevet"), ensuring the same level/quality of observership for all FPAs" (Gorez, 2003).
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