News

News updates from the Kiribati Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Development.

Kiribati Welcomes PNA Ministers with New Digital Billboard

The 20th session of the PNA Ministers meeting is going to take place next week from 2 to 5 June 2025 here in Tarawa, Kiribati. The MFOR team are using new technologies such as the new digital billboard to display to the public about this important Kiribati hosting of this meeting. This digital billboard has just been installed at Bonriki to greet new Ministers and participants arriving into the country. This billboard will later be used for promotional purposes and awareness raising of the Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources (MFOR). The MFOR thanked the partners for their support provided to this hosting of the PNA meeting.

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A New Era for Aquaculture in Kiribati: KIFL Platform Inaugurated

The new KIFL aquaculture platform in the lagoon of Tarawa, which consist of large fish cages, toilet facilities, warehouses, control room, office space and boat birthing spaces was inaugurated on the Thursday, 29th May 2025, by the Honourable Minister Ribanataake Tiwau and His Excellency Ambassador Zhou Limin from the Chinese Embassy in Kiribati. This current platform is the first phase and will expand into 3 more phases in the future. This new structure was also blessed by Fr Mataio from the Catholic Church. A representative from Ocean family Mr Hao Wang, a shareholder of the Joint Venture Company KIFL from China who sponsored the construction of this platform, also gave their congratulatory remarks for the successful completion of this project, on behalf of their President Mr Shen. The engineering supplier and contractor for this highly engineered structure from Qihang Innovation (Qingdao) Marine Engineering Equipment Co Ltd also delivered their congratulatory remarks during this opening ceremony. This official launching and opening event took place in the lagoon of Tarawa and was witnessed by Ministers, Members of Parliament, Members of the Diplomatic Corp, Church Leaders, Secretaries, CEOs from State-owned companies, and many other invited guests. This aquaculture platform will venture into large scale sustainable farming of live reef fishes and other high value fish species for future export into high end and luxury markets abroad. The Government of Kiribati acknowledges KIFL and especially our shareholders, Ocean family and Golden Ocean for their good cooperation and trust in Kiribati to develop this sector. 

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Nelson Symposium Advances Regional Strategies on Ciguatera Management

In late May this year, a symposium on ciguatera poisoning in the Pacific Islands was held in Nelson, Aotearoa New Zealand. Officers from the CA and CFD presented ciguatera monitoring, awareness, and other activities occurring in Kiribati at this symposium. Among the participants were Fisheries officers from Tonga, Fiji, Wallis & Futuna, and the Cook Islands, as well as representatives from other institutes, including USP, FNU, and Ciguatera scientists from Australia, French Polynesia, Japan, and New Zealand, in particular, the Cawthron Institute who were hosting the symposium.
This event provided a platform for sharing knowledge and experiences about ciguatera monitoring and scientific research, fostering collaboration among regional and international experts. A focus of the discussions was on strategies to mitigate the impacts of ciguatera poisoning, increase public awareness, and improve monitoring systems in the Pacific region.
The meeting also facilitated discussions on future research, funding and collaboration opportunities to address the challenges posed by ciguatera poisoning in the Pacific region.
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Empowering Kiribati Seafood Inspectors Through Regional HACCP Training

Representatives from the Kiribati Seafood Verification Division, participated in a three-week Regional Competent Authority Workshop from the 28th of April to 16th May 2025 held in Pearl Resort, Pacific Harbour, Fiji. The workshop covers range of essential topics on Seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (7 Principles), HACCP Desktop Audit, EU Market Access, EU requirements for Vessels, EU regulations, Microbiology, Auditing principles, thermal processing, planning, budgeting, supervision and leadership skills. The workshop was facilitated by Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) consultants, Ratu Jope Tamani and Mrs. Cushla Hogarth, and was funded through the Pacific-European Union Marine Partnership (PEUMP) Programme. The Kiribati Competent Authority through the Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources extend its sincere appreciation to FFA and PEUMP for this invaluable opportunity of regional networking, capacity building and professional development.

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