Formed 1995 Jurisdiction New Zealand | Dissolved 2012 | |
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Superseding agency Ministry for Primary Industries Website www.mpi.govt.nz/travel-and-recreation/fishing/ | ||
The Ministry of Fisheries (Māori: Te Tautiaki i nga tini a Tangaroa), also known by its acronym MFish, was a state sector organisation of New Zealand whose role is ensuring the sustainable utilisation of fisheries. This involved conserving, using, enhancing and developing New Zealand's fisheries resources. In April 2012 it was merged into the newly formed Ministry for Primary Industries.
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History
The Ministry of Fisheries was established as a stand-alone agency in 1995, after a major governmental review of fisheries legislation, as well as ongoing reforms in the New Zealand State Sector. Previously, responsibility for fisheries belonged to New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), which later became New Zealand's Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry when the Ministry of Forestry merged with the remaining Ministry of Agriculture in 1998. On 1 July 2011 the Ministry of Fisheries was merged back into MAF.
The Ministry of Fisheries was merged into the Ministry for Primary Industries in 2012.
Responsibilities
The Ministry was primarily responsible for fisheries management within New Zealand's 200-nautical-mile (400 km) Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). It tried to ensure that fisheries are sustainably used within a healthy aquatic ecosystem, and employed approximately 432 staff throughout New Zealand, most of who police fisheries to ensure compliance with the conservation and access/allocation rules, set by Government. MFish also undertook fisheries research to provide information needed to determine how many fish and other marine organisms (of various species) can be safely taken while ensuring the sustainability of the resource.