The figure reflected an increase of 120,000t from the previous record of 2.28mt for last year.
WCPFC executive director Andrew Wright said at the WCPFC fourth scientific committee meeting in Port Moresby that PNG is an “increasingly important member of tuna commission.”
Wright said PNG “is very proactive in terms of trying to promote the development of its domestic tuna fishing industry.”
“As the minister said, the average catch from PNG has averaged 300,000t of tuna over the last five years,” he said.
Wright added that PNG now accounts for approximately 20 percent of the Western and Central Pacific tuna catch “so it does have a very important role to play.”
“So not only is PNG promoting the development of its domestic industries but also because tuna is a shared resource, PNG is co-operating with other members of the Commission to promote sustainable utilization of those resources,” he said.
Wright said this “is the worlds’ biggest tuna fishery now and this year is a record catch of tuna recorded from the Western and Central Pacific, 2.4mt, so it is 120,000t more than the previous record which is last year so it is a very significant fishery.”
Wright said the WCP accounts for just over 50 percent of the global supply to the world market.
Speaking at the official opening of the meeting, PNG Fisheries Minister Ben Semri said the average catch over the last five years from this fishery now exceeds 300,000t which exceeded 400,000t in 2006 for the first time.
Semri said almost 150,000t of this catch is now processed on shore with majority of PNG’s exports heading for Europe and the US.
“I am proud to be the minister in a developing Pacific Island country that now produces around 20 percent of the Western and Central Pacific ocean purse-seine catch,” he said.
