Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The Forum Fisheries Agency is shifting its focus to value retention and economic development for its members.

FFA Director-General Noan David Pakop said the shift was critical for members as Pacific tuna stocks remain among the healthiest in the world.

This was a key aim laid out in the Vakamanu Regional Pacific Fisheries Strategy 2026-2035, adopted by Fisheries Ministers in Wellington, New Zealand in July.

The strategy was presented to Pacific Islands Forum Foreign MInister in Suva last Friday by Pakop and the Pacific Community (SPC) Deputy Director-General Dr Andrew Jones.

The Vakamanu strategy includes both key elements of the East New Britain Initiative (ENBi) and the FFA Strategic Plan 2026-2031.

Pakop said the Strategy provides Pacific Leaders with holistic oversight of the management and development of the region's fisheries and aquaculture resources.

"Fisheries and aquaculture are not a sectoral issue. They are a strategic regional resource, underpinning government revenue, food security, livelihoods, and the practical expression of our Members' sovereignty and stewardship of the ocean," Pakop told the ministers in Suva.

"It is therefore important that Leaders continue to have holistic oversight over the management and development of this critical resource. The Vakamanu Strategy is the vehicle by which Leaders are able to exercise that oversight."

MAXIMIZING ECONOMIC RETURNS

The East New Britain Initiative (ENBi) is a regional platform that was launched by FFA member countries in September 2023, while the FFA Strategic Plan 2026-2031 was approved in July.

Both focus is to maximize economic returns from the region's shared tuna resources by shifting focus from exporting raw materials to local processing, value addition, and regional economic collaboration.

The FFA said one of the main target is to increase local ownership and participation in the global tuna value chain.

While over 50% of global tuna originates in Pacific waters, little is processed locally, with just a few island countries like Fiji and the Solomon Islands processing tuna products locally.
The ENBi also targets shared island resources and securing investment in joint island ventures.

Fiji and Tuvalu, for example, have been discussing partnerships in their fisheries sectors.

The FFA said the Vakamanu Regional Pacific Fisheries Strategy 2026-2035 highlights the key fisheries and aquaculture agreed by the Ministers and it brings offshore fisheries, coastal fisheries, and aquaculture together under a single regional 10-year framework.

The outcomes of the 2026 Fisheries Ministers Meetings, together with the Vakamanu Regional Pacific Fisheries Strategy 2026-2035, will now be considered by Pacific Islands Forum Leaders during their meeting in Koror, Palau from 30 August - 4 September.