The 18th Head of Fisheries Meeting (HoF18) concluded in Noumea New Caledonia after a 2 weeks long meeting.

The meeting started with a Pre HoF18 meeting (14th -17th April) followed by the HoF18 from the 20th -24th April.

The meeting focuses on Coastal Fisheries and Aquaculture development issues faced by member countries and how best SPC could addressed member issues in a timely and practical manner.

Kiribati would like to thank SPC for its continuous support and funding for making this meeting a success.During the meeting, acknowledgements and positive mention from other Pacific Member Countries of aquaculture work/facility seen in Kiribati as a great example, with keen interests to learn from and the applauding of the 3 countries in which Kiribati is among them in their commitmments in progressing work on the maritime boundaries and Ocean policy. During the meeting, SPC had made commendable progress in finalizing the Grant Agreement on the Regional Tuna Programme and happy to announce that Kiribati is the first member country to have finalized and signed the agreement for implementation at the national level.

The meeting focused on coastal fisheries and aquaculture development issues faced by member countries, and on how SPC can best address these challenges in a timely and practical manner. It also provides room for updates on some of the SPC flagship programmes to Head of Fisheries for update and information. During the discussions, several Pacific Island member countries acknowledged and positively highlighted the aquaculture work observed in Kiribati, noting them as strong examples and expressing keen interest in learning from Kiribati’s experience.In addition, Kiribati was commended as one of the three countries demonstrating strong commitment to advancing work on maritime boundaries and ocean policy.

The meeting also noted SPC’s commendable progress in finalising the Grant Agreement for the Regional Tuna Programme. Kiribati was pleased to announce that it is the first member country to have completed and signed the agreement, enabling implementation at the national level.

Kiribati extends its sincere appreciation to SPC for its continued support and funding, which contributed significantly to the successful convening of this meeting.