To Shore Up Indian Ocean Tuna Fisheries, Managers Must Make Reforms

Indian Ocean bigeye tuna is among the world’s most valuable tropical tuna populations, worth nearly US$1 billion at the final point of sale. This population isn’t overfished now but, without improvements in how it is managed, Indian Ocean bigeye could be vulnerable to overexploitation in the near future, a problem that has plagued yellowfin and skipjack in the region for years.

Fortunately, the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) can help secure the future of this fish when it meets from 16 to 20 May, in Seychelles and online. At that meeting IOTC should adopt a modern, precautionary harvest strategy for Indian Ocean bigeye that could ensure its sustainability long into the future. IOTC should also make strides to reform the rules around transferring catch at sea by requiring more stringent monitoring, increasing oversight of vessels and enacting better management efforts overall.

A harvest strategy, which is known as a management procedure at IOTC, is a fisheries management system that considers long-term needs for securing and maintaining healthy fish stocks and uses a science-based, pre-agreed framework for achieving sustainability. This contrasts with traditional fisheries management, which relies on yearly negotiations that, particularly in the case of IOTC’s tropical tunas, can be politically charged and ineffective.

For example, Indian Ocean yellowfin tuna has been overfished since 2015—a situation that has persisted because IOTC member countries use annual catch limit discussions to try to fish as much as possible, not secure sustainability.

IOTC is scheduled to renegotiate yellowfin management again this year in an attempt to address this ongoing issue, and that discussion will likely be as contentious as in past years. But if IOTC had a management procedure in place for yellowfin, the commission would already have an agreed-upon framework for rebuilding the population and eventually achieving—and maintaining—sustainable, profitable and predictable fisheries.

With bigeye tuna, IOTC has a chance to improve management before the stock falls into troubled status. The commission has been developing management procedures for all of its tropical tunas for more than a decade, and the one for bigeye is ready for adoption. And because the population isn’t considered overfished, there is no need for additional negotiations on how to rebuild the fishery.

The table is set for this adoption: Australia has submitted a bigeye management procedure proposal to IOTC that would prevent needless future discussions on overall catch limits, provide a greater level of certainty for the fishing industry and help protect bigeye from overfishing. IOTC members should adopt this proposal without delay; it’s the first full management procedure proposed to the commission and represents a major accomplishment by the Australian delegation. In adopting it, IOTC would show it is serious about the future of fisheries management and would establish bigeye tuna management as a model for other fisheries in the Indian Ocean and beyond.

Managers should seize opportunity to strengthen monitoring of transshipment and improve data collection

Transshipment, the transfer of catch from a fishing vessel to a carrier vessel at sea or in port, is an important part of IOTC-managed fisheries. But because it often takes place far away from authorities and in areas governed by multiple management regimes, transshipment can be a vehicle for illegal, unreported and unregulated activities, and it can be difficult for managers to verify reporting from vessels. And, as transshipment events and the quantity of fish transshipped increase over time—they’ve risen 118% and 31% respectively since 2014—there is an even greater need for better monitoring and management.

To help address these shortcomings, Japan has introduced a proposal to IOTC that shortens the time that fishing vessels have to submit their transshipment reports from 15 days to five and calls for increased inspection of carrier vessels that are not registered on the IOTC record of vessels. That measure also would increase inspection of boats whose location and other data—which are tracked by satellite—may indicate illicit activities. Although this proposal is a good step that IOTC members should support, they should also work to improve it by closing loopholes.

At this year’s meeting, IOTC members should adopt additional regulations that make it easier for members and the Secretariat to better identify vessels, and track what they are doing and where. Specifically, the commission should require that carrier vessels be flagged to an IOTC member country and create a publicly available list of fishing and carrier vessels authorized to transship in IOTC waters. This list should also include each vessel’s unique, traceable International Maritime Organization (IMO) number. IOTC should also require vessels to submit their transshipment reports—including their IMO number and the transshipment location— to their flag State, and any other relevant coastal or port States, as well as the IOTC Secretariat, within 24 hours of each transshipment.

Further, IOTC should increase oversight of longline vessels. Currently only 5% of longline vessels above 24 meters in length are required to have observers onboard, which hinders catch traceability, transparency and data collection for science-based fisheries management. Electronic monitoring (EM) systems, which record vessel activities with onboard cameras and computer technology, can help, and IOTC members should endorse a proposed workplan and terms of reference that would lead to agreement on EM minimum data standards in 2023 and EM program standards by 2025. At the same time, IOTC members should build upon the European Union’s regional observer scheme proposal by adding provisions to incrementally increase observer coverage to at least 20%  on longline vessels by 2025.

IOTC has a lot on its plate at this year’s meeting, but making these overdue reforms now would improve Indian Ocean fisheries management for many years to come.

Glen Holmes is an officer and Raiana McKinney is a senior associate with The Pew Charitable Trusts’ international fisheries project. Shana Miller is a project director working on international fisheries conservation for The Ocean Foundation.