Northeast Asia regional gov'ts association sets up Marine and Fishery Subcommittee in China

QINGDAO, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Marine and Fishery Subcommittee of the Association of North East Asia Regional Governments (NEAR) was established Monday in east China's Shandong Province to promote marine cooperation and trade in the region.

The subcommittee, responsible for holding seminars and forums on oceans and fisheries, aims to improve cooperation in marine science and technology, conserve aquatic resources, combat illegal fishing and coordinate mitigation of the effects of natural disasters.

The committee, based in the Shandong Provincial Oceanic and Fishery Department, plans to hold a plenary session every year. The department would coordinate the meetings, said a statement from the department.

The subcommittee would initiate exchanges of civil servants and researchers among member provinces, but no specific timetable was available.

The establishment of the subcommittee would provide more opportunities for Shandong to cooperate with other NEAR members and inject more energy in building the blue economy in the Shandong Peninsula, said Jiang Daming, Governor of Shandong.

The NEAR was founded in Gyeongsangbuk-do of the Republic of Korea (ROK) in 1996 by provincial governments of China, Japan, ROK, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Mongolia and Russia. It has 69 members of provincial governments and nine subcommittees.