FISH4ACP helps set tuna sector in Marshall Islands on more sustainable course

Development of tuna value chain to increase employment, bolster food security and expand exports

22 January 2021, Majuro – The global FISH4ACP initiative, helping to unlock the potential of fisheries and aquaculture value chains in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific, was launched in the Marshall Islands today in a bid to strengthen its tuna sector for the benefit of the people of this Pacific island nation.

“We need to secure and reinforce the role of fisheries in the sustainable development of our countries, whose economies strongly depend on fisheries resources,” said Cristelle Pratt, Assistant Secretary General of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), adding: “By joining together we can help build a tuna value chain that will benefit the people of the Marshall Islands.”

“FISH4ACP is an important investment for the European Union,” said the European Union (EU) ambassador for the Pacific, Sujiro Seam, adding: “This is about the sustainable management of fisheries resources, allowing people to improve their livelihoods while preserving their natural assets.”

Tuna accounts for almost all national fisheries production and exports from the Marshall Islands, a sprawling chain of coral islands and atolls between Hawaii and the Philippines. Most of the catch derives from offshore industrial fishing, with purse seining being the most dominant form.

Local harvesting and processing capacities are limited, however, and transshipment activities currently represent the bulk of fisheries related economic activities in Majuro, the capital and main harbour in the Marshall islands. By expanding domestic operations, there is scope to create more employment to boost the incomes of local populations across the Pacific island nation.

FISH4ACP will work closely with the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority to bring added value onshore with a view to increase employment opportunities and bolster food security by promoting best practice fishing techniques, while expanding exports to markets such as the European Union.

FISH4ACP is an initiative of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) aimed at making fisheries and aquaculture value chains in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific more sustainable. FISH4ACP is implemented by FAO and partners with funding from the European Union (EU) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

The initiative seeks to enhance the productivity and competitiveness of twelve fisheries and aquaculture value chains in twelve OACPS member countries, making sure that economic improvements go hand in hand with environmental sustainability and social inclusiveness.