HONIARA, 26 June 2019 – Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Fisheries who attended the 16th Forum Fisheries Committee Ministerial Meeting in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia, last week joined other ministers in signing off on a key report – the Strategic Action Programme for the Sustainable Management of Living Oceanic Resources by the Small Island Developing States of the Western and Central Pacific (the Strategic Action Programme or SAP) – for submission to the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Honiara 13 June 2019: There is need for a change in attitude if we ever going to tackle the issue of plastic waste, this is the message that rang out loudly as staff of the Ministry of Fisheries led a clean-up campaign on Saturday in Honiara.

Students wishing to participate in the Poster and Essay Competition to mark the World Oceans Day and Coral Triangle Initiative Day have until May 21 to submit their entries according to the organisers of the competition.

The new five dollar note ($5) which was launched yesterday at the Heritage Park Hotel has tuna as one of its prominent features.

The Western and Central Pacific Ocean holds the world’s largest tuna fishery with a total catch of more than 2.5 million tons a year. The target species (albacore, skipjack, bigeye and yellowfin) are being managed at sustainable levels and there is no overfishing occurring for these stocks. This is in stark contrast to all other oceans.

The Community Based Resource Management (CBRM) Section in the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources is organising a Poster and Essay Competition for students to mark the World Oceans Day which will be celebrated in June this year.

The Ministry of Fisheries last Thursday presented 'Chuppu' to five stakeholders at Aruligo West Guadalcanal. Chupu presentation is a widely practiced custom on Guadalcanal which still holds a lot of practical and cultural significance to the people on the island.

The Annual Parties to Nauru Agreement (PNA) officials meeting got underway in Koror, Palau this week and Solomon Islands is being replresented by a small delegation led by the Director of Fisheries Mr Edward Honiwala.

The Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources’ drive to increase its workforce has received a timely boost with the donation of re-furbished laptops by New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI).

Malaita Province Fisheries office has benefited from computer equipment given by the Ministry of Fisheries his week.