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RADAUS
Fri, 5 Feb 2010
MAJURO, Marshall Islands ---- A group of eight Pacific Island countries have chosen a new leader to spearhead their campaign to capture a bigger slice of the economic benefits from the Pacfic's multi-billion dollar tuna fishery.
The group, made up of Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Nauru, Solomon Islands, Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands, has appointed Transform Aquorau, from the Solomon Islands.
Dr Aquorau, a recognised expert on the Pacific Tuna fishery, says the group, known as the Nauru group or the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA), is extremely important in the fishing economy.
“These eight countries control about 60 percent of the global tuna supply,” he said.
The members' combined 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zones interlock covering a huge expanse of the Pacific Ocean where a lot of the tuna are caught.
The group's new headquarters is being set up in the Marshall Islands, and the Director of the Marshall Islands Marine Resource Authority, Glen Joseph says its hoped Pacific Islands will be able to increase their share of fishing money.
“The amount and the value of the fishery taken out of the Pacific Island waters amounts to about four billion dollars,” he said.
“And by all assessments the Pacific Islands are not getting a fair share of that four billion dollars.”
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UPDATE FROM PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM LEADERS MEETING IN CAIRNS