Interest among foreign fisheries investors increase after government's restructure of fisheries.

A number of overseas investment groups including RD Tuna Canners Limited of Papua New Guinea’s Madang Province and the Philippines have shown interest in investing in Solomon Islands.

This follows the government’s recent announcement of its intention to refocus and restructure the country’s entire fisheries industry at the advise of the Fisheries Advisory Council.

A statement from the Office of the Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare says the Council consists of local and marine and fisheries experts appointed by the Minister for Fisheries and Marine Resources, Nolen Leni.

The statement says the technical experts have noted that Solomon Islands is situated within one of the world’s richest tuna vicinities known as the ‘tuna belt’.

It says the tuna belt accounts for a significant proportion of the entire global tuna catch conservatively valued at over six-billion US dollars per year.

The government is keen to restructure the tuna industry to ensure tuna operations and activities take advantage of the resources and that it maximizes the benefits to the country.

The government hopes to also strengthen its relationship with the current tuna industry players, Soltai, TriMarine and National Fisheries Development to help contribute to the new emphasis.

Source: SIBC