PACIFIC TUNA UNDER THE MICROSCOPE AS GLOBAL FISHERIES SCIENTISTS MEET IN SAMOA

APIA, SAMOA — 11 August 2026: Samoa has become the centre of an important international fisheries gathering this week, as scientists and fisheries experts meet in Apia to examine the health and future management of tuna stocks across the Western and Central Pacific.

The 22nd Regular Session of the Scientific Committee of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC), known as SC22, officially began in Apia today and will continue until 19 August.

Delegates were welcomed to Samoa with a traditional ‘Ava Ceremony ahead of the formal opening.

But behind the ceremony is a meeting dealing with an issue of enormous importance to Pacific countries: who is fishing the Pacific's tuna, how much is being caught, whether stocks remain healthy, and how those resources should be managed for the future.

What is the WCPFC?

The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission is the international body established to conserve and manage highly migratory fish stocks, particularly tuna, across the Western and Central Pacific Ocean.

Its membership brings Pacific Island countries to the same table as some of the world's largest fishing nations and economies.

That is necessary because tuna do not remain within one country's borders.

A tuna may move between Samoa's Exclusive Economic Zone, the waters of another Pacific country and the high seas during its lifetime. Managing the resource therefore requires countries to cooperate.

Samoa is a member of the WCPFC and has a direct interest in how the region's tuna fisheries are managed.

Why are the scientists in Samoa?

The meeting underway in Apia is specifically the WCPFC's Scientific Committee.

Its role is to examine the scientific evidence that ultimately helps governments make decisions about fisheries management.

Over the next nine days, experts are scheduled to examine fisheries data and statistics, stock assessments, management issues, ecosystems and bycatch.

The agenda includes scientific work concerning yellowfin, bigeye, skipjack and albacore tuna, as well as Pacific bluefin tuna, blue marlin, sharks and other species.

Scientists will also examine issues including climate and ecosystem indicators, electronic reporting and monitoring, fishing activity and future harvest strategies.

The findings and recommendations coming out of this scientific process can later help inform decisions made by the wider Commission.

Why its important to Samoa

For Samoa, one particularly important species being discussed is South Pacific albacore tuna.

Samoa is listed among the main participants in the South Pacific albacore fishery alongside countries including Fiji, Tonga, Cook Islands, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and American Samoa.

In 2024, approximately 74,591 metric tonnes of South Pacific albacore were caught within the WCPFC Convention Area, with an estimated catch value of around US$292 million.

The encouraging news is that the latest scientific assessment indicates the South Pacific albacore stock is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring.

However, maintaining that position requires continued monitoring and management.

That is where meetings such as SC22 become important.

Scientists are not simply looking at how many fish are in the ocean today. They are helping governments understand how much fishing pressure stocks can withstand while remaining productive into the future.

A much bigger Pacific resource

Tuna is one of the Pacific's great natural resources.

Unlike minerals that can only be extracted once, a healthy tuna fishery can continue producing food, employment and economic opportunities generation after generation — provided it is managed sustainably.

For Small Island Developing States such as Samoa, the issue is particularly significant.

Pacific countries may have relatively small land areas and populations, but collectively they are custodians of enormous areas of ocean containing globally significant fisheries resources.

That gives Pacific governments an important stake in the scientific and political decisions surrounding tuna.

It also means the question is not simply about conservation.

It is about ensuring Pacific nations continue to receive economic and social benefits from resources found within and moving through their ocean.

Important discussions happening in Apia

Among the issues before scientists at SC22 are future harvest strategies for bigeye, yellowfin, skipjack and South Pacific albacore tuna.

The committee will also consider fisheries data, electronic monitoring, the impact of fishing on sharks and billfish, ecosystem and climate indicators, and scientific methods used to assess fish populations.

Samoa itself has submitted its annual fisheries report to the Scientific Committee as part of the meeting.

The discussions taking place in Apia this week therefore feed into a much larger regional system determining how one of the Pacific's most valuable renewable resources is understood and ultimately managed.

For Samoa, hosting SC22 is more than an international conference.

It places the country at the centre of scientific discussions concerning the future of the ocean resources upon which Samoa and its Pacific neighbours have a direct economic, environmental and generational interest.

The decisions may eventually be made around negotiating tables — but much of the science behind those decisions is being examined in Samoa this week.