Fiji continues to work towards improved fisheries transparency, with some major developments in recent months. Transparency is increasingly recognised as essential for sustainable fisheries management, enabling responsible governance, improving market access, and safeguarding marine ecosystems. This month, the Ministry of Fisheries opened the Offshore Fisheries Operations Centre in Suva which is equipped with advanced surveillance technology, including vessel tracking and monitoring systems and access to satellite imagery. Fiji’s Minister for Fisheries, the Honourable Alitia Bainivalu said the timing of the opening was critical: “This new monitoring centre arrives at a pivotal moment for Fiji’s fisheries sector. Recent data indicates that IUU (Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported) fishing costs our nation approximately FJ$50 million (US$21.8 million) annually in lost revenue.” The operations centre supports Fiji’s 2024 National Plan of Action on IUU Fishing, which aims to reduce illegal fishing activities by 40% by 2027. In January 2025, the Fiji parliament passed the Maritime Surveillance Enhancement Act, which increased penalties for IUU fishing violations and expanded the mandate of monitoring authorities. But challenges remain in the sharing of data between agencies, government departments, and other stakeholders. A 2023 Fiji Ministry of Fisheries report states that IUU fishing incidents in Fijian waters increased by 18% between 2022 and 2023, with unauthorised foreign vessels accounting for approximately 65% of these violations. In November 2024, the World Wide Fund for Nature – Pacific (WWF-Pacific) through its Fiji office, organised the second “Improving Fisheries Transparency in Fiji Workshop”, bringing together stakeholders from across the fisheries sector and relevant government agencies. “We recognise that transparency is crucial for aligning our fisheries with international standards, improving market access, and fostering sustainable practices. This workshop is part of our commitment to a People and Nature Positive Pacific, where communities thrive, and our oceans are protected,” WWF-Pacific’s Interim Fiji Conservation Programme Manager, Duncan Williams, told that workshop. Coalition for Fisheries Transparency Director, Maisie Pigeon, says for market countries, transparent fisheries would mean “a transparent supply chain where you are able to trace the seafood on your plate from the boat that caught it, all the way to the store where you purchased it.” The Global Charter for Fisheries Transparency The Global Charter for Fisheries Transparency is a fisheries transparency standard that is championed by the Coalition for Fisheries Transparency (CFT), a network of over 50 civil society organisations from various regions, which collaborates with WWF and the Fisheries Transparency Initiative. For local, coastal fishing communities, Pigeon says transparency would mean “they have access to fisheries information and are participating in decision making in a meaningful way and are given a voice in way that we haven’t always seen.” She identifies the issue of beneficial ownership as an emerging concern for more countries and a likely focus of the upcoming ‘Our Ocean’ and UN Ocean conferences. “We’re seeing a lot of movement towards that because being able to track illicit vessels back to their owners means that the sanctions are actually impacting the people who are benefitting from these kids of illegal activities. So, it’s just a really sound enforcement mechanism.” Pigeon says Fiji has made impressive progress in many areas of fisheries transparency, but notes that crew safety and welfare remains a crucial focus. “I think there is a tremendous opportunity in that. We have lots of partners within the coalition whose countrymen are feeding those fleets that are operating in Fiji. So, there’s a lot of opportunity for cooperation and partnership and multilateral agreements.” Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) The FiTI Standard also has 12 principles that address fisheries transparency, working with governments to enable publicly accessible, and easily understandable fisheries information and data. FiTI’s Regional Coordinator for the Pacific, Leba Dranivesi says FiTI is working across five Pacific Island nations: Fiji, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Kiribati, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands. “There’s a lot of information that is out there,” Dranivesi says. “I think the issue is getting it together under one home or website, so people don’t have to jump here and there to find the information.” She believes this would help not only in stock management but also in directing research for academics and deeper cooperation between Government, CSOs, and the industry in areas where there are information gaps, as well as attracting investments. Dranivesi also stresses the importance of high-quality data which is primarily data that is understandable, verifiable, and usable. Learning from the Seychelles The Seychelles, an island nation in the Indian Ocean, recently became the first country to become compliant with the FiTI standard, leading to increased interest by investors. Since 2022, Fiji-based company TraSeable Solutions has been working in Seychelles to centralise and publish fisheries data, leading to enhanced transparency and sustainability and information-sharing across agencies. While the initial phase of this work was funded by the World Bank, the country saw such value in the contribution TraSeable Solutions was making that it engaged it directly to digitise other processes, including aquaculture and port data. TraSeable co-founder, Kenneth Katafono, says in Seychelles, there was a real commitment across the board to the process, as it was consistent with the country’s brand and philosophies around environmental sustainability. In Fiji, TraSeable has worked with the Ministry of Fisheries to digitise boardings and inspections on vessels and catch accountancy system, which will account for all the fish landed in Fiji by commercial fishing vessels. But he encourages more investment in the personnel who collect and manage data to break down silos, and a change in mindset across the sector to encourage more willingness to share data, rather than treating it as something ‘secret’. For the Fiji Fishing Industry Association (FFIA), while the benefits of increased transparency are clear, there is a need for more investment. FFIA Executive Officer, Anare Raiwalui, stated that the industry is in full compliance with the national fisheries laws whereby the provision of their fishing data to the Ministry is mandatory by law. The biggest challenge FFIA is going through right now is the modernisation of its aged fishing fleet. Raiwalui says the industry is mandated by law to provide its catch records. “We are doing our role in being compliant with the State. “The government plays a good role in compliance,” Raiwalui notes. “But when it comes to development, that is an area they also need to work on.” He says that transparency is important for markets that demand such information, and that certification under the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has also been important. “Our fish has been proven to be sustainable. So, we can get a bit better pricing as compared to non-MSC catches.” Raiwalui agrees that transparency must include consideration of crew welfare. “These are the people who are contributing to the success of the company. We are working with the International Labour Organization, the Ministry of Labour, and other agencies to come up with laws specifically for fishers, for crew to protect their interests.”