Information paper on the impact of climate change on tropical tuna species and tuna fisheries in Pacific Island waters and high seas areas (modelling the effects of climate change on tuna abundance in areas beyond national jurisdiction), developed for Conservation International (CI) as part of the GEF-funded, World Bank implemented Common Oceans ABNJ Ocean Partnerships Project led by FAO. 

Tuna are the focus of significant fisheries in the Pacific Ocean, with landings of four species (skipjack tuna, yellowfin tuna, bigeye tuna and albacore tuna) constituting approximately 70% of the global tuna catch. Stock assessments for skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye and South Pacific albacore tunas in the Pacific Ocean currently assume eastern and western stocks, a split that reflects historical development of fishery management in the region rather than biological considerations. There is widespread agreement that uncertainties surrounding the stock structure of the four main target species could have important impacts on population dynamics models used to assess stock status and inform management options. Improved knowledge of stock structure is also essential to modelling the effects of climate change on the distribution and abundance of tuna species. This paper reviews current knowledge and understanding of the stock structure of skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye and South Pacific albacore tunas in the Pacific Ocean, through an exploration of available literature relating to movement, connectivity, and spatial dynamics. Informed by an expert workshop, key questions were outlined that need to be addressed to determine the stock structure for each species, and propose some potential sampling designs by which future studies may address these uncertainties and improve understanding of stock structure of the four tuna species in the Pacific.

A recent workshop organised by the Pacific Community has made significant progress in identifying the likelihood that each of the four tropical tuna species is comprised of separate stocks (self-replenishing populations). The workshop also identified the investments needed to identify the number, size, distribution and behaviour of all stocks comprising a tuna species in a Pacific Ocean context, and developed a strategic plan to implement this foundational research. The workshop and subsequent work identified a draft ‘Strategic Plan to Identify the Stock Structure of Tropical Pacific Tuna’. The investments involved in the sampling and analyses required to identify the stock structure of each tuna species are considered to be an urgent priority, given the great significance of tuna to Pacific Island economies and the mobility of tuna species. This report provides a comprehensive technical review on a species by species basis of the methods applied to date, and current knowledge of stock structure.

The objective of the following report is to present a business case focusing on the identification and assessment of opportunities for investment in a new and innovative Centre of Excellence for International Fisheries Development (CEIFD), based in Chennai, south India, which might be attractive to private and public investors. The work was undertaken in 2018 as part of the World Bank/GEF-funded Oceans Partnership Programme in the Bay of Bengal (OPP-BOB), hosted by the Bay of Bengal Inter-Governmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO) in Chennai.

The objective of the following report is to present a business case focusing on the identification and assessment of opportunities for investment in Yellow Fin Tuna (YFT) monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) within India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Bay of Bengal, which might be attractive to either (or both)  private or public investors. The work was undertaken in late 2018 as part of the World Bank/GEF-funded Oceans Partnership Programme in the Bay of Bengal (OPP-BOB), hosted by the Bay of Bengal Inter-Governmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO) in Chennai.