Issues and challenges for the Pacific and global food security in - - PDF document

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Issues and challenges for the Pacific and global food security in coastal fisheries of the region

Presentation to the United Nations Open‐ ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea Fifteenth meeting: "The role of seafood in global food security"

27 to 30 May 2014

Key Fundamental Questions

• What is importance of

coastal seafood to food security?

• How much coastal

seafood will be needed?

• What can we do about

it?

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Importance to Food Security

Coastal Fisheries

• Coastal fisheries 160,000 mt

– USD 320‐500 million Oceanic Fisheries

• 2012 tuna catch of 2.6

million mt – USD 7.2 billion.

Food security means – “that all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and preferences for an active and healthy life “– World Food Summit (1996)

Role of the coastal fisheries in Pacific Food Security

• Fish is a corner stone of food

security;

• Average annual consumption
• Melanesia, 30 – 118 kg/person;
• Micronesia, 62 – 115 kg/person;
• Polynesia, 50 – 146 kg/person
• Most fish (includes finfish &

Invertebrates) used for food comes from coastal waters ;

• In some larger islands, particular

in land PNG freshwater fisheries also contribute to food security

20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160

• Aver. Annual per Capita Fish product

Consumption (kg/yr/person)

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Subsistence Vs. Commercial Coastal Fisheries

• Est. Annual Production

10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000 Melanesia Micronesia Polynesia Subsistence (tonnes) Commercial (tonnes)

• Est. Annual Production Value

20,000,000 40,000,000 60,000,000 80,000,000 100,000,000 120,000,000 Melanesia Micronesia Polynesia Subsistence Value (USD) Commercial Value (USD)

Estimated demand

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Role of the coastal fisheries in Global Food Security

• Most of the world’s fisheries are fully

– or over exploited;

• Creation of “push/pull” situation;
• Marine resources in the Pacific

region is becoming increasingly attractive and highly valued;

• Current exports of coastal fisheries

resources to meet global food security includes; sea cucumber, spiny lobster, and high‐valued finfish such as deep water snapper

Issues & Challenges

• 1. Status of Stock & Production
• Fully exploited or over

fished state;

• Coastal fisheries production

will not expand in future;

• Coastal fisheries production

will decline and the situation will become worse in the future.

Sea cucumber stock status 1971 ‐ 2011

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Issues & Challenges

• 2. Population Growth
• Significant population growth

forecast for both within and

• utside the Pacific region;
• Growing gap between Coastal

fisheries production and demand for fish,

• Decline in fish accessible food

security due to over fishing and habitat destruction

Issues & Challenges

• 3. Patterns of Economic Development
• Economies of most Pacific Island

Countries will not be in very good shape;

• Many people without jobs

seeking income and food security from harvesting of coastal fisheries;

• Willingness to compromise

tomorrow’s sustainability for today’s food security and income

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Issues & Challenges

• 4. Climate change
• Coastal and oceanic

fisheries of the pacific region will be equally subjected to direct and indirect effects of climate change;

• Progressive reductions in

coastal fisheries productivity

What can we do about it?

Time

Well‐ managed fisheries

Fish needed by growing population Fish needed by growing population Fish available from coastal stocks Fish available from coastal stocks

Poorly ‐ managed fisheries

Gap in supply of fish to be filled with tuna and freshwater fisheries Time Fish available from stocks Fish available from stocks Fish habitat Fish habitat

a) b)

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Solutions

• 1. Effective Fisheries Management
• Preserve existing welfare

benefits through effective fisheries management

• Evaluation of the economic

implications of management options

Solutions

• 2. Access to Fish
• Oceanic fish to compensate

the declining food resources from coastal fisheries;

• Low‐cost inshore Fish

Aggregating Devices (FADs);

• Pond Aquaculture;
• Small Pelagic fish species

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Conclusion

• Coastal fisheries resources will not be able to meet food security

demand from growing populations;

• Need to establish food security policies to protect coastal

fisheries recourses to allow for the continuing flow of coastal seafood;

• Develop measures that will help reduce fishing effort of coastal

fisheries resources to a level where the productivity of a fishery is not greatly depleted but is sustainable;

• Use more of the oceanic fish for domestic consumption to

compensate the declining food resources from coastal fisheries; and,

• Alternative sources of fish for food include, small scale tuna

fishing around FADs, aquaculture, and small pelagic fishery.

Thank you