Western & Central Pacific Ocean
Cook Islands
Federated States of Micronesia
Fiji
Kiribati
Marshall Islands
Nauru
Niue
Papua New Guinea
Palau
Samoa
Solomon Islands
Tokelau
Tonga
Tuvalu
Vanuatu
§Pacific SIDs collectively - ~20 million km2 EEZ
       -  half million km2 land area
§Populations range from 1500 (Niue) to 5.5 million (PNG)
§Western Tropical Pacific Warm Pool Large Marine Ecosystem

Western and Central Pacific Oceanic Fishery
§World’s largest stock tuna fishery ~ 2 million tonnes
§half the world’s tuna catch worth an estimated US$2.billion
§Four key tuna stocks - skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye and South Pacific albacore
§Key tuna stocks in good condition (bigeye and yellowfin ?)
§3 major fishing gears - purse seine, longline and pole-and-line operated by several fishing nations
§A variety of non-target species (by-catch)
§Tuna’s migratory nature is a complicating factor - each stock may migrate through numerous national jurisdictions and areas of high seas