Government of the Federated States of Micronesia

PNA Summit Concludes in Palau

Koror, Palau (National Oceanic Resource Management Authority): February 25, 2010 - The First Presidents Summit of the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) was held on Koror, Republic of Palau on February 25, 2010. PNA is comprised of the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. PNA is a grouping of countries in the Pacific which was established in 1982 to promote cooperation in the conservation and management of the tuna resources that occur within their EEZs. PNA countries' waters account for nearly 60% of the tuna catches in the WCPO and 25% of the global tuna catches supplying the world's tuna canneries and processing facilities.

President Manny Mori arrived in Koror along with other PNA Heads of States to attend the one day historical meeting. This was the first gathering of the PNA Heads of States since PNA was established in 1982. The FSM, Kiribati, Nauru and Palau were represented by Presidents while Solomon Islands and Tuvalu were represented by their Prime Ministers. Papua New Guinea and Marshall Islands were represented by their Ministers of Fisheries. The meeting was called by President of Palau H.E. Johnson Toribiong to follow up on his statement to the 64th Annual United Nations General Assembly in 2009 in which he called for the establishment of an OPEC-type arrangement to be developed for the PNA to extract greater benefits from the tuna fisheries that occur in PNA waters.

During the summit, the Leaders delivered statements. In his statement, President Mori emphasized that sustainability of the tuna resources is of paramount importance to FSM and that any cartel type arrangement needs to be carefully considered against national priorities and circumstances. He also confirmed FSM's unequivocal support and unity with the Forum Fisheries Agency as the principal body from which regional fisheries policy is developed. A copy of the President's full speech can be found at the following website: http://www.fsmpio.fm/Speeches/mori/pna.htm.

The Leaders adopted on 25 February the Koror Declaration, which contains the following agreed principles:

  • To effectively conserve and restore highly migratory stocks while maximizing economic returns and explore suitable arrangements for the Parties to control output and limit effort;

  • To promote the greater commercial utilization of the tuna resources for the benefit of the Parties, and towards this end, the "Vessel Day Scheme" as adopted for purse seine vessels is hereby confirmed;

  • To close off additional high seas areas between 100N and 200S and 1700E and 1400 W in the Western and Central Pacific by prohibiting purse seine vessels licensed by the Parties from operating in such waters;

  • To initiate management practices that will enhance commercial and economic opportunities for the Parties through optimum utilization of the tuna fishery; and

  • To proceed with the full assessment for certification of the skipjack fishery to increase the value of the tuna resource;

The Leaders directed their officials to summarize the presentations and identify issues which may be further developed. The Leaders also expressed their appreciation to H.E. Johnson Toribiong, President of Palau and the Government and people of Palau for hosting the Summit.