Analysis of the determinants of the performance of the countries in the management of marine resources

Marine resources have failed to escape the "tragedy of the commons" posed by Hardin (1968). The globalization of economic activity because of trade liberalization is usually pointed as one the factors that explain the decline of marine resources. Nevertheless, in this context, Copeland and Taylor (2009) have suggested that property rights and the exercise of these rights are not exogenously determined within the country, but they are the result of different political economic circumstances, which could also be modified with trade integration, thereby generating perhaps different results from those predicted with traditional models. Based on these arguments, in this paper we empirically analyze the factors influencing the decline of marine resources and the effectiveness of fisheries management. We found evidence supporting Copeland and Taylor (2009) hypothesis.