The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the United Nations Environment Programme Caribbean Environment Programme (UNEP-CEP), secretariat to the Protocol for Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW), and the Caribbean Fishery Management Council (CFMC), will be hosting the above-mentioned Workshop at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, from 1 to 5 May 2006.

The Workshop is being organized by the Western Central Atlantic Fishery Commission (WECAFC) and UNEP-CEP with funding provided through the FAO Project “CITES and Commercially-exploited Aquatic Species, Including the Evaluation of Listing Proposals”(funded by the Government of Japan), the SPAW programme of UNEP-CEP, and the CFMC.

The Workshop will give particular attention to those countries which have been experiencing the greatest difficulties in fulfilling the CITES
requirements for sustainable utilisation and which were affected by the recommendations emanating from the Review of Significant Trade of the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) prior to the CITES workshop in the Dominican republic in December 2005. The Workshop will be linked to the CITES Review of Significant Trade in /Strombus gigas/ and build on recommendations and decisions made by CITES and the range states at that Workshop.

The Workshop will address the following issues:

i) The principles of sustainable use of fisheries resources

ii) The fisheries management process

iii) Assessment of queen conch resources

iv) Management tools appropriate for queen conch fisheries

v) Monitoring and control, and

vi) The formulation of effective management plans.