Following the successful hosting of the 52nd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in November, the Cook Islands is preparing to welcome hundreds of officials and observers to the region’s largest annual gathering of tuna fisheries negotiators.

Known as the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC20), the meeting will run from December 3-8, following a regional Forum Fisheries Committee Special Officials 131^st Meeting (FFC131) from November 27 to December 2.

Some Pacific Islands Fisheries Ministers have indicated they will head their delegations to the WCPFC sessions. The Ministry of Marine Resources are leading hosting duties of the Cook Islands, working with Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Tourism Cook Islands, and the Culture Ministry.

The WCPFC manages highly migratory species such as tuna and tuna-like species in the western and central Pacific Ocean (WCPO). WCPFC20 will attract between 550-600 participants, including delegations from Asia, Europe, and the Americas and across the Pacific.

MMR Secretary Pamela Maru says the back-to-back meetings will provide a timely networking boost for the ministry, while the influx of visitors will benefit the wider hospitality sector.

“As our tuna Commission we want to ensure these meetings happen more often in the Pacific. We follow Samoa, Fiji, Tahiti, Federated States of Micronesia, Papua New Guinea, Guam, and Hawaii as earlier WCPFC session hosts and given the size and global nature of the event, MMR has partnered with Tourism Cook Islands and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration to ensure a true Kia Orana experience for all delegations,” she said.

“Importantly, we are hosting the 20th annual session -- an important milestone in the history of the Commission particularly as the only tuna regional fisheries management organisation with all key tuna stocks in the ‘green’ and being sustainably managed”.

“Other than hosting benefits, there are professional opportunities to expose our local staff in the planning and management of these international fisheries forums. We also expect to raise our national profile and awareness as a strategic partner in regional and international fisheries forums and drive stronger understanding amongst our iti tangata about how tuna fisheries are managed in the region.”

The Cook Islands Ministry of Marine Resources (MMR) manages the sustainable management and development of the marine sector, with rights and responsibilities provided through a comprehensive international legal framework, including the Convention for the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).

Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs), such as the WCPFC, meets annually for scientific, compliance, administrative, and Commission decision-making forums, with the participation of member countries, including the Cook Islands.

The 20th WCPFC session will progress several issues from the last session, held in Vietnam, including ongoing discussions on target reference points, harvest strategies, and compliance measures to ensure healthy tuna stocks across our critical species in the Pacific continue. Other annual features around Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported fishing and fishing vessel labour standards will be on the agenda. In 2023, the 20th session will include a new standing agenda item reporting on the impact of climate change on the WCPFC Fishery.

“The Tuna Commission itself is a story of Pacific-led resilience and triumph in the development of a convention that delivered our regional fisheries management organisation, and hosting a WCPFC session here in the Cook Islands is an exciting chance to bring that legacy closer to our people,” says Maru, “it’s important for us to remember that technical details and policy discussions taking place in these sessions must ultimately deliver benefits for our nations.”

Deputy Prime Minister Robert Tapaitau is expected to be part of a special opening plenary of the session, including WCPFC Executive Director Rhea Moss-Christian of the Marshall Islands and WCPFPC Chair Dr Josie Tamate of Niue, at the National Auditorium on December 4.

• MMR