Prospects for sub-regional cooperation in the management and conservation of shared fishery resources in the Gulf of Thailand

At least ten fish stocks migrate in the Gulf of Thailand and are shared by Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. This biological phenomenon became important in fishery management after these four littoral states extended their national jurisdiction and claimed the 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zones. These fish stocks do not respect the political boundaries. The management and conservation of these fish stocks is complicated because of the competing interests of all countries concerned. It is imperative that the four littoral states achieve fishery cooperation and proper management mechanisms in order to optimize the benefits from the fisheries of these fish stocks.; International laws and other international initiatives stipulate cooperation among nations to ensure the conservation and management of shared fish stocks, either directly or through appropriate sub-regional or regional organizations. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility for the four littoral states to achieve international fishery cooperation in conservation and management of shared fishery resources. Five international fishery cooperative arrangements at the bilateral and multilateral levels from various regions are presented. The study also presents the application of a problem-solving model to assess the effectiveness of regime formation and regime implementation. The lessons learned facilitate a crafting of feasible formulations for sub-regional cooperation over shared fishery resources in the Gulf. It is urgent to collaboratively establish the knowledge base of shared fish stocks in the Gulf. To achieve sub-regional cooperation in management and conservation of shared fish stocks in the Gulf, a new institution design is recommended.