Indonesia Fit to Develop the Tuna Potential

Bali 2014 (Antara) -- Indonesia claims the world's country with the highest tuna potential. According to the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries' data, the year-on-year tuna production total is 613,577 tons with income reaches Rp. 6,3 trillions. Strategically positioned between the world's two key tuna-producing oceans - Indian and Pacific oceans - has led Indonesia to be an important country for the world's tuna market, both for the resource and the trade. The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Sharif C. Sutardjo, said that the tuna industry is currently facing many challenges. The productivity reduction, the size shrinkage, and the difficulty of tracking tuna population on the high seas, to name a few. Therefore, the MMAF bolsters the the sustainable fisheries development to meet those challenges. The sustainable tuna development includes the tuna reproduction, genetic, water temperature and swimming depths as well as the tuna observation from the very first time it's arrived in the port or on the boat. "The research run by the Tuna Benoa Fishery Research Institute (LP2T) is MMAF's commitment to maintain the tuna resource sustainability in Indonesia as well as to meet the world's demand of tuna," said the Ministry after visiting LP2T in Mertasari, Bali, on Feb.15. Sharif stated that in the entire Indonesian Fishery Management Zone, the exploitation status of albacore, yellow fin, bigeye, and blue fin tuna is extremely alarming with the status of fully exploited and even over-exploited, and it's only the skipjack tuna still being in the moderate status. This negative trend will eventually impact the livelihood of the fishermen and the tuna industry. "The tuna sustainability is not a responsibility of one or two nations, but it's the entire world having to take part in it. The national tuna management therefore will always be a concern of the RFMOs (Regional Fisheries Management Bodies) who has mandate to regulate the global tuna management," Mr. Sutardjo asserted. Sharif continued, to maintain as well as bolster the tuna management globally, the Indonesian Government has become a member of WCPFC (Western and Central pacific Fisheries Commission). By joining the Commission, Indonesian is currently included in three Regional Fishery Management Organizations; Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC), Commission on Conservation of Southern Blue fin Tuna (CCSBT) and Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC). "Indonesia is also subject to the international law in terms of the high seas fishing activity, including the feasibility of the vessels and the conservation and the management compliance," he re-affirmed. The tuna research In the meantime, the Head of the R&D of MMAF, Achmad Poernomo, explained that the tuna landings monitoring is conducted over 16 tuna processing companies based in Benoa Port. The monitoring is daily run by the LP2T's enumerators by collecting the data and information of the haul and the activity aboard. The data and information collected will then be yearly delivered to IOTC and CCSBT. "Having joined to RFMO, Indonesia thus obtains the tuna fishing quota, the tuna selling access to the international market, especially the state members of any RFMO," Mr. Poernomo explained.