Tampere, Finland, 7 September 2024 – The European Anglers Alliance gathered in Tampere (Finland) for its annual General Assembly (GA) hosted by its Finnish EAA member Suomen Vapaa-ajankalastajien Keskusjärjestö (SVK), Finnish Federation for Recreational Fishing. During this year’s General Assembly, the organisation celebrated 30 years of cross-border cooperation to promote recreational fisheries as a sustainable sector, the many socio-economic and environmental benefits the recreational fisheries sector brings to EU societies and how it is a key ally in protecting aquatic ecosystems and fish stocks across Europe.
This year’s EAA General Assembly brought together representatives from all EAA member organizations to discuss key issues and developments in the angling community, the organisation as such and future prospects of fisheries policy at national and EU level.
To start the General Assembly, the
Finnish Federation for Recreational Fishing presented their
Mimmit Kalastaa project which aims to attract more girls and women in recreational fisheries this especially by lowering the threshold for them to take up this amazing outdoor activity. The SVK delegation was pleased to share that thanks to the project the number of women/girls taking up angling as outdoor hobby in Finland has increased for the first time in 10 (18 % in 2020, 23% in 20222).
To conclude the importance of angling in Finland, representatives of the Natural Resources Institute Finland presented some conclusions of their recently published study on the recreational fishing value and regional economic impact in various Finnish regions. This study focused on the types of profiles of recreational anglers, where they travel to in Finland for angling, what their main personal costs are during their fishing trips and what this means for the regional economy in Finland’s main regions such as Lapland, Pirkanmaa, South Savo, etc. The researchers were pleased to share with the EAA’s General Assembly that recreational fishing in Finland contributes to around €54 million of added value, providing around 1000 direct FTE jobs throughout the country.
During the General Assembly, EAA President Fred Bloot underlined that the organisation should “keep focus on their good work on both the local, national level as well as the European level. This as fish species do not know borders, the fact that many anglers go out to for angling tourism throughout Europe and safeguarding European aquatic ecosystems is a pan-European quest where the angling community for sure can play a major role in”.
During this 30th General Assembly in Tampere (FIN), EAA members thanked the respective outgoing chairs of the Subgroup on Fresh Water and the Subgroup on Communication: Øyvind Fjeldseth of EAA member organisation
Norges Jeger- og Fiskerforbund (NJFF) and Miroslav Zaberl of EAA member organisation
Ribiska Zveza Slovenije (RZS). All EAA members expressed their acknowledgement and appreciation for their hard work in overseeing the duties of their respective subgroup during the past several years.
To conclude the EAA’s 30th General Assembly, the EAA’s GA meeting approved the request for application by the
Angling Council of Ireland. This organisation, having been EAA member in the past, represents several different branches of angling in Ireland, such as Sea Angling, Coarse Angling, Predator (Pike and Perch) Angling, Salmon and Trout Angling. EAA is pleased to see ACI rejoining the organisation and looks forward to cooperating for the further development of recreational fisheries in the EU.
With the new EU political mandate yet to begin, the EAA will remain committed to achieving a full and fair recognition of the recreational fisheries sector in EU legislation and will continue to advocate for more sustainable fisheries management as well as strong protection for vulnerable fish species, biodiversity, freshwater and marine ecosystems and habitats.