Ways to expand the Marshall Islands and PNA members involvement in the multi-billion dollar tuna value chain was a key point of discussions during last week’s third Parties to the Nauru Agreement Leadership Summit.
The meeting was held in Kiritimati Island, Kiribati. President David Kabua was among the heads of state participating along with Minister John Silk, MIMRA Director Glen Joseph and other MIMRA staff.
Nearly two years ago, MIMRA — through its joint venture company Pacific Islands Tuna — negotiated a deal with Walmart that so far has resulted in over 20 million cans of Walmart house brand tuna made from fish supplied from PNA waters that is caught by internationally recognized sustainability rules.
“Obviously with the opportunities, come many challenges and this is what our leaders discussed with the obvious question, ‘what’s next?’” said Joseph. “How can we value add our collective strength to harness more economic gains on the regional tuna stock? The success of the Vessel Day Scheme is a model” for continuing opportunities, he said.
“A clear interest in the value chain through market participation as resource owners is now laid (by PNA leaders),” said Silk after the meeting. RMI Pacific Islands Tuna and Papua New Guinea’s New Britain hubs and spokes initiative are pathways that the leaders support to value-add benefits,” Silk said.
“Imagine a day when we have more of our fish landed and processed adding to onshore employment, economic spin offs, sectoral investments including infrastructure support for these regional initiatives, connecting to international market contracts and access.”
The leaders discussed the fact that most of the engagement in the tuna industry is done at the domestic level with individual members. But, the leaders acknowledged, the effort lacks a regional direction as they continue to work in ‘silos’, Joseph said.
“It is clear what the leaders want in terms of the regional direction and so as officials, we have our marching orders,” Joseph said.