1. By Les Clark OCEANS GOVERNANCE AND THE WCPO TUNA FISHERIES
It is a great pleasure to be with you and I thank the organisers. This presentation draws on work undertaken under the Pacific islands oceanic fisheries Project but the views are mine. I apologise that the presentation is not as focused on climate change as most of the other presentations but it is rather fundamental and I hope you will find it of value.
By Les Clark 1

2. Introduction
The Western Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) and WCPO Ocean Governance as an outcome of the UN Fish Stocks Agreement
Advances
Shortfalls and Reform Needs
A broader ocean governance framework
Rebalancing RFMO participation
The new oceanic fisheries management arrangements in the WCPO including the establishment of the new Commission are one o fthe major features on the new oceanic fisheries seascape created by the UN Fish Stocks Agreement. These arrangements reflect some major advances in oceanic fisheries governance. But they also reflect just as clearly the shortfalls in the current oceanic fisheries governance structure, including the need for further reform, in particular to nest oceanic fisheries management within a broader frame work of oceanic fisheries governance and to rebalance the structure of participation in the RFMOs that are the core vessels of the current ocaenic fisheries governance structure. In my view, changes will be necessary in the way RFMOs are established and operate if they are to establish the kind of robust regimes that will be needed for future management changes including adaptation to climate change.

3. Recall the Background
UNCLOS left unfinished business with respect to high seas fishing
Led to UNCED calling for a solution to problem of overfishing in the high seas
And to The UN Fish Stocks Agreement in 1995
Strengthening RFMOs, especially regarding high seas monitoring and compliance
Updating fishery management principles
Oversight of the exercise of flag state control
Lets recall the background. There was unfinished business after UNCLOS because of the gap in regulation on the high seas, which left high seas management to flag states.
This led to the call from Rio in for a solution to problem of overfishing in the high seas, and to The UN Fish Stocks Agreement being concluded in 1995
Key features of that agreement were
Strengthening of regional fisheries management organisations especially regarding high seas monitoring and compliance
Updating fishery management principles, partciualrly through the inclusion of the precautionary principle; and
Oversight of the exercise of flag state control, This latter feature was based on the approach of giving other states with a real interest in the high seas fisheries involved the right to look over the shoulders of flag states to ensure that they were properluy exercisign their responsibilities on the high seas and hold then accoutable if they failed. In esence, this gave the high seas flag states and tpo a lesser degree relevant coastal states custodianship over high seas fisheries on behalf of the global community

4. WCPO Advances A new WCPFC Commission
Emerging high seas compliance and enforcement regime - Straight out of the UN Fish Stocks agreement
Initial though still inadequate set of measures capping catch or effort in all the major fisheries, and mitigating impacts on vulnerable bycatch consistent with JPOI targets
High quality data and science programme
Measures largely based on extending and leveraging coastal state (largely Pacific Island) in-zone measures to the high seas (not that these states are perfect)
And often in spite of the efforts of high seas fishing states
The application of the provisions of the UN Fish stocks agrement has resulted in some major advances in the conservation and management of oceanic fish stocks in the WCPO over the last 4 years.
This slide lists some of those features
There is a new Commission.
There is a high seas compliance and enforcement regime straight out of the Fish stocks agreement including boarding & inspection, satellite-based vessel tracking, and an onboard observer programme.
There is a high quality data and science programme .
And there is an initial though still inadequate set of both target and non-target stock-related measures
The compliance and enforcement programme and the conservation and management measures are largely based on extending and leveraging in-zone programmes and measures to the high seas
This is common among RFMOs. In general, the more effective RFMOs for example in the North Atlantic and Antarctica have been those with a strong coastal state influence with a substantial share of the stocks inside national waters, while the high seas RFMOs, notably the tuna RFMOs have been the least effective. The WCPFC is different because ,

5. Substantial shortfalls
Gaps, lags and shortfalls in high seas monitoring, compliance & enforcement (e.g. VMS, observers, data provision and sharing)
Lack of linkages and broader understanding (e.g. science and high seas monitoring)
There are also some substantial shortfalls in the implementaion of Fish Stocks in the WCPO
Most notably these include gaps, lags and shortfalls in the high seas MCS programmes.

6. Here are some examples. There is an onboard observer programme 100% on purse seiners from January and 5% coverage on other vessels by mid But no observers on fresh fish vessels north of 20N, about Hawaii until 2014, 14 years after they signed up in 2000 to a Covention that said their vesels shouldn’t fish outside their waters unless they could take an observer.
And VMS
And data
The decision-making proces is by concensus and teh standards are set by the lowest common denominator among the fishing states
In this sense the underlying approach of the Fish stocks

7. Responses - Now Heightening market consciousness
Broader awareness raising
Increasing understanding
Direct action – Greenpeace style
External RFMO review
Developing Country Capacity Building
All of these have their placa
But at this point

8. Long Term Reform Needs
Nesting oceanic fisheries management within a broader framework of ocean governance
E.g. the Benguela Current commission
UNEP Regional Seas/SPREP/PI Regional Oceans Policy
Strengthened role for the global community in high seas custodianship, including participation in RFMOs

9. THANK YOU 9