YAREN (NAURU GOVT/FFA)—The 133rd Annual Forum Fisheries Committee (FFC) officials meeting commenced this week with Nauru taking on the FFC officials chairmanship.
Nauru Fisheries and Marine Resources Authority (NFMRA) CEO, Charleston Deiye takes over the role from Glen Joseph of the Republic of the Marshall Islands in an official handover ceremony.
“I am honoured to assume this esteemed position and I am eager to serve the forum fisheries committee to the same standard as the previous Chair Mr Glen Joseph of Marshall Islands, who has undoubtedly done an outstanding job,” Deiye said.
The officials will engage in deliberations over the next five days on complex issues faced by FFA members and find ways to move forward and maintain a sustainable growth and management of fisheries.
The FFC is the governing body of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA).
FFC officials are required to meet annually to approve budgets and work programs of the FFA and agree on ways for the Pacific fisheries to move forward.
Meanwhile, Republic of Marshall Islands(RMI) legal counsel, Laurence Enos Edwards II, has highlighted progress in harvest strategies and climate change implementation plans, while emphasising the importance of transshipment hub management.
Edwards is in Nauru with the Marshall Islands delegation for the Forum Fisheries Committee (FFC) Annual Officials 133rd Meeting .
“We’re very grateful, happy and thankful to the Government of Nauru and people of Nauru for welcoming us graciously into the beautiful island nation of Nauru – just like the Marshall Islands – is a small island developing state.
“[Marshall Islands] is keen to progress further and the important priority areas of work such as the progressing harvest strategy work, as well as Climate Change Strategy implementation plan developed by FFA member countries.
“Moreover, the Regional Monitoring Control and Surveillance [RMCS] Strategy, we would love to progress further, that’s a high priority as well as for the RMI as well as you know, Marshall Islands as being the number one transshipment hub in the world.”
A draft of the RMCS Strategy 2024 – 2029 was deliberated at the 27th Monitoring Control and Surveillance Working Group (MCSWG) earlier in March and will be presented to the FFC Officials Meeting this week.
The key objectives of the RMCS Strategy are to strengthen monitoring, control and surveillance of the longline fishery, particularly on the high seas, continue to strengthen the effectiveness of MCS measures through regional cooperation, build national MCS expertise and capacity and continuing the trend towards risk and intelligence-based allocation of MCS resources…PACNEWS