The FFA Secretariat lead a delegation that participated as observers in the recent Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) Ad Hoc Meetings held at La Jolla, California (USA) from the 5-10 February 2007. The FFA delegation to this meeting included two FFA staff, Mr. Samasoni Sauni, a Fisheries Management Advisor Officer and Mr. Darren Cameron, Fisheries Management Advisor, and two representatives from the FFA member countries, Mr. Bernard Thoulag, Executive Director for the Federated States of Micronesia National Oceanic Resources Management Authority; and Ms Tooti Tekinaiti the acting Director for the Kiribati Fisheries Department. Both country representatives are Pacific Islands Oceanic Fisheries Management Project focal points of contact for their respective countries.
The IATTC members spend the week in long discussions in three consecutive sessions on Conservation and Management Measures, Finance and By-catch. The outcome of the meetings included a series of recommendations and statements that are expected to form the basis for further discussion and endorsement at the IATTC annual meeting to be held in June 2007.
The exposure to the way in which the IATTC conducts meetings by way of debate and discussion on related issues common to the WCPFC was considered of great benefit to the FFA delegation that attended the ad hoc IATTC meeting. The FFA Secretariat has traditionally supported the attendance of member country representatives at the meetings of other regional fisheries management organizations in an effort to build capacity of its membership for their participation in regional management events in the western and central Pacific.
The IATTC meeting did not reach a general consensus on possible management measures that would address priority issues on excessive catch of juveniles and adult stocks of bigeye and yellowfin. Nonetheless, the discussion at the meeting evolved to take into account possible complimenting measures or a ‘tool kit' of measures such as spatial and temporal closures, global total allowable catches, capacity limits and effort controls, as well as restrictive FAD fishing.
On financial matters, the IATTC meeting spent a great deal of time debating the funding formula used in their proposed 2007 budget, particularly in regard to variables used in the formula. There was clear separation in the debate, between the Latin American countries plus USA and Vanuatu in opposition to Japan, Spain, Taiwan and Korea.
The IATTC By-catch Working Group was not able to agree on issues of discussion relating to by-catch. Eventually the group stressed the need for more research findings to further guide management decisions in future Commission meetings.
The participation of member country representatives and that of Mr. Cameron at the IATTC meeting are supported by the Pacific Islands Oceanic Fisheries Management Project funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).