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title: "Working towards minimising seabird bycatch: The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission and ACAP renew their Memorandum of Understanding"
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# Working towards minimising seabird bycatch: The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission and ACAP renew their Memorandum of Understanding

![IATTC](https://acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Logos/IATTC.jpg)

 The Albatross and Petrel Agreement has [renewed its Memorandum of Understanding](https://acap.aq/documents/mous/4530-mou-between-iattc-and-acap-secretariat-1/file) (MoU) with the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission ([IATTC](https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Inter-American+Tropical+Tuna+Commission&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8)).

 The renewal reaffirms each organisation's commitment “to facilitate cooperation between the IATTC and the ACAP Secretariat with a view to supporting efforts to minimise the incidental by-catch of albatrosses and petrels listed in Annex 1 of ACAP within the IATTC Convention Area.”

 ![IATTC Convention Area](https://acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Logos/IATTC_Convention_Area.png)*A map from the IATTC website indicates the IATTC Convention Area*

 The MoU promotes cooperation between the organisations in the following areas:

 
1. development of systems for collecting and analysing data, and exchanging information concerning the bycatch of albatrosses and petrels in the IATTC Convention Area;
2. exchange of information regarding management approaches directly or indirectly relevant to the conservation of albatrosses and petrels;
3. implementation of education and awareness programmes for fishers who operate in areas where albatrosses and petrels may be encountered;
4. design, testing and implementation of albatross and petrel bycatch mitigation measures relevant to fishing operations in the IATTC Convention Area;
5. development of training programmes on conservation techniques and measures to mitigate threats affecting albatrosses and petrels;
6. exchange of expertise, techniques and knowledge relevant to the conservation of albatrosses and petrels in the IATTC Convention Area; and
7. reciprocal participation with observer status at the relevant meetings of ACAP and IATTC.

 ACAP’s Executive Secretary Dr Christine Bogle and IATTC Senior Policy Advisor, Jean-François Pulvenis signed the MoU earlier this year in May. First signed in July 2011, the MoU has now been renewed with a clause to automatically extend every six-years unless the Participants decide otherwise.

 *10 July 2023*