An upcoming revision to the law regulating the Marine Institute of Peru (Imarpe) might threaten its quality and independence. One of the main changes that introduces the new decree is that the Imarpe’s president and board directors will be selected every four years through public competition.

Several Peruvian industry associations raised concern about this new decree. In a press release, they stated that the IMARPE was established in 1963 and thanks to a serious, responsible and technical management of the Peruvian fishing resources has obtained countless awards from international organizations such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Bank, the OECD and ECLAC. The IMARPE’s independence from the industry allowed its technical solvency.

“It is now intended to modify this fact so that IMARPE’s president can be designed without the mentioned requirements, which would put at risk the independence and autonomy that characterize the scientific body, making it subject to political and private pressures,” the associations said. The Emergency Decree is stated to be unconstitutional by the industry associations without having an economic-financial basis.