RP seeks lifting of ban on tuna fishing

CEBU, Philippines — The Philippines plans to take the lead during the annual meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission in December this year to push for the lifting of a high seas tuna fishing ban that was imposed only this year.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquaculture Resources (BFAR) Director Malcolm Sarmiento said the Philippines would spearhead the move which he said would be supported by several other countries.

The Philippines, which has been experiencing a drop in its tuna fishing industry, has been actively negotiating with Papua and New Guinea (PNG) and Tonga for access to their fishing grounds.

The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission is a body that groups Pacific island nations with fishing countries to agree on measures to conserve what scientists have warned are fast dwindling tuna stocks.

Tuna varieties such as big eye and yellow fin are in great demand for sashimi and sushi, while the skipjack variety is used for canning.

While the Philippines consumes tuna, most of its catch is exported to Japan which accounts for almost 90 percent of tuna consumption of sashimi and sushi.

The Philippine move runs counter to a proposal from a group of Pacific Island nations known collectively as the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) to extend the areas currently covered by the ban.

The PNA includes PNG, Palau, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands.