Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing occurs in many

B basically means that they will stop all fishing as once the registration is expired, they won't be able to renew it, so if they see any vessel on water, it's probably illegal.. a visionary move.

E talks about IUU in another country, so irrelevant

VERITAS PREP OFFICIAL SOLUTION:

The prediction put forth in this passage is that the Togolese authorities have bucked the historic trend and have found a way to quickly control IUU fishing. The conclusion is that if the Togolese authorities stop registering vessels and issuing fishing licenses to foreign vessels, IUU fishing will decrease significantly in a short amount of time.

However, it is important to recognize that this action will only stop new registrations and licenses, and will do nothing about existing registrations and licenses. Imagine, for example, that registrations and licenses expire only every 10 years – all the boats and fishermen currently active will remain unchecked for up to 10 years. In such a scenario, while the action taken will reduce IUU fishing in the long term, we have no assurance of any short-term reduction (i.e., the reduction will not be “rapid”). In order to “rapidly reduce” the problem, existing registrations and/or licenses must be up for renewal within a short period of time.

While it may be tempting to select answer choice D, the fact that IUU fishing is also known to be detrimental to the food security of affected countries does not strengthen the argument that rapid change will come from suspending issuance of registrations and licenses. Rather, it merely strengthens the assertion that IUU fishing is a serious problem.

Let's break down the argument and the prediction being made.

**The Prediction:** Togolese authorities' suspension of vessel registration and foreign fishing licenses **should rapidly reduce IUU fishing** in the country's waters.

**The Reasoning for the Prediction:** The suspension is a "visionary move" to curb notoriously difficult illegal activity. The implicit assumption is that by stopping new registrations and licenses, they are cutting off a major avenue for IUU fishing.

**To Strengthen the Prediction:** We need information that makes it more likely that suspending registration and licenses will, in fact, rapidly reduce IUU fishing.

Let's evaluate each option:

* **A. In Togo, IUU fishing occurs less frequently now than it did in the 1970s and 1980s.**
* This tells us about historical trends but doesn't shed light on the *effectiveness* of the *new specific measure* (suspending registration/licenses). It's irrelevant to the future impact of this particular policy.

* **B. Vessel registration expires annually in Togo.**
* This is a strong strengthener. If registration expires annually, it means that a significant number of vessels currently operating, including those involved in IUU fishing, will soon need to renew their registration. Since new registrations are suspended, these vessels will effectively be unable to continue legally operating. This creates a rapid and decisive mechanism for the suspension to take effect and reduce IUU fishing by removing existing (and potentially illegal) vessels from the waters. If registration expired every 10 years, the "rapidly" aspect of the prediction would be much weaker.

* **C. Illegal fishing continues unchecked in some West African countries.**
* This speaks to the broader regional problem but doesn't tell us anything specific about the effectiveness of Togo's particular policy within its own borders. It's irrelevant to the prediction about *Togo's* waters.

* **D. IUU fishing is also known to be detrimental to the food security of affected countries.**
* This provides additional justification for curbing IUU fishing (its negative impact on food security) but doesn't tell us whether the *method* Togo is using will be effective. It supports the *need* for action, not the *effectiveness* of *this particular action*.

* **E. Several vessels flying the Togolese flag are suspected of illegal fishing in the waters of other countries.**
* This suggests Togo might have an issue with its own-flagged vessels engaging in IUU fishing elsewhere. However, the prediction is about reducing IUU fishing *in Togo's waters*. This option doesn't tell us if suspending registration/licenses for *all* vessels (especially foreign ones, which are specifically mentioned) will reduce the activity *within Togo*. In fact, if the issue is primarily with Togolese-flagged vessels fishing abroad, this policy might not directly impact them if they aren't relying on new Togolese licenses for operations *in Togo's waters*.

**Conclusion:**

Option (B) provides a crucial piece of information that makes the proposed policy (suspending registration and licenses) immediately effective and "rapidly" impactful. If existing registrations/licenses expire annually, then the ban quickly affects the current fleet, which is essential for a rapid reduction.

The final answer is B Thanks AI

The question argument mentions ' Togolese authorities have suspended the registration of fishing vessels....', doesn't this mean that all currently operating vehicles will have their registration suspended? Getting a vehicle's registration suspended means that the vehicle, although currently in operation, will not be allowed to legally operate anymore as its registration has been cancelled. So option B doesn't look good anymore. Option E looks promising.

The word to notice here is "several"
This means 1 or more but not all.

Showing that 1 or more vessel registration has been suspended will not lead to the conclusion and the argument falls apart.
So B is more visionary by saying that if it expires annually then what happens after 1 year will be all illegal as it has already suspended giving licenses.

I guess if the argument is Togolese authorities have suspended the registration of fishing vessels and the issuance of fishing licenses to foreign vessels. The Key word being foreign how does B link back up to the fact that they are not going to issue licenses to foreign vessels?