Six Pacific Islands (Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Tokelau, Tuvalu) derive at least 45 percent of all government revenue from tuna. Some 25,000 jobs in the region are also based on Pacific tuna fisheries.
Many Pacific Islanders consume two to four times more fish than people in other nations. Traditionally, most of this fish has come from coastal fisheries based mainly on species associated with coral reefs.
1.5 million metric tons of tuna are caught in the waters of Pacific Island countries each year, supplying more than 30 percent of the global market for tuna.
The threats
Increased demand for fish in the Pacific Islands fuels overfishing, which in turn threatens local food security, livelihoods and ecosystems. Climate change is compounding the problem by lowering harvests from coral reef fisheries and changing the distribution of tuna, reducing vital benefits to island economies.
Our role
Conservation International is strengthening community-based management to conserve coastal fish habitats and maintain healthy fish stocks. We are also helping communities meet increasing demands for fish and adapt to climate change by supporting a shift from catching primarily coral reef species to catching tuna.
We are also helping the Pacific Community and other Pacific Island fisheries agencies to better understand the effects of climate change on tuna. This knowledge will help identify the adaptations needed to reduce the risks of tuna redistribution to national economies.
Our plan
© Johan Bell
Strengthening community-based management of coastal fisheries
To help conserve fish habitats and populations for Pacific Islanders, Conservation International is implementing a people-centered fishery improvement model. Our approach harnesses the capacity of local communities and incorporates recommended governance reforms.
Diversifying the use of tuna to improve food security and livelihoods
Together with the Pacific Community (SPC) and national governments, Conservation International is helping coastal communities catch more tuna by expanding the use of nearshore fish-aggregating devices (FADs) anchored close to the coast.
Achieving sustainable fisheries
Conservation International is helping to sustain tuna fisheries by assisting SPC to identify the spatial structure of stocks, and develop better models for the responses of tuna to climate change.
Adding value to tuna
Conservation International and partners are collaborating with the private sector to assist Pacific Island countries to increase the value of tuna and to create more jobs based on tuna fisheries. This includes an exchange of knowledge between Pacific Island fisheries agencies and Iceland, a global leader in sustainable fisheries development.
Our tuna initiative
Economic benefits of tuna fishing for Pacific Island countries
Our Tuna Initiative was designed to assist national and regional fisheries agencies implement the sustainability, value, employment and food security goals outlined in the Regional Roadmap for Sustainable Pacific Fisheries.
This map shows the total catches of tuna in the exclusive economic zones of Pacific Island countries (5-year averages 2013-2017) and the contributions of tuna fishing license fees to government revenue in 2016.
Publications
Conservation International's Tuna Initiative
Tuna Initiative Update 2018
Tuna-dependent Pacific Island States and climate change
POLICY BRIEF: Implications of climate-driven redistribution of tuna for Pacific Island economies
Optimising the use of nearshore fish aggregating devices for food security in the Pacific Islands
Reducing mortality of bigeye tuna during purse-seine fishing: A research agenda
Operationalising access to oceanic fisheries resources by small-scale fishers to improve food security in the Pacific Islands
Adaptations to maintain the contributions of small-scale fisheries to food security in the Pacific Islands
Biodiversity redistribution under climate change: Impacts on ecosystems and human well-being
Managing consequences of climate-driven species redistribution requires integration of ecology, conservation and social science
Diversifying the use of tuna to improve food security and public health in Pacific Island countries and territories
Fish, food security and health in Pacific Island countries and territories: a systematic literature review
How can climate predictions improve sustainability of coastal fisheries in Pacific Small-Island Developing States?
Explaining Ocean Warming: Causes, scale, effects and consequences
Realising the food security benefits of canned fish for Pacific Island countries
A new climate change vulnerability assessment for fisheries and aquaculture
Impacts of climate change on fisheries and aquaculture
Good governance for migratory species