A record number of participants attended this year’s annual stock assessment workshops hosted by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community’s Oceanic Fisheries Programme (SPC-OFP). A total of 30 participants from 23 Pacific countries attended the workshops which are now recognised as an important program in capacity building for fisheries officers and managers in the region. This year, for the first time, participants were introduced to the Tuna Management Simulator (TUMAS) a new software tool developed by the OFP that allows fishery managers and advisors to evaluate the performance of different management options.  TUMAS allows commission members to explore and compare the results of different management options and assists them to make management decisions and negotiate at regional fisheries meetings.

The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) has taken a major step toward addressing concerns about shark populations with initial approval of a three-year Shark Research Plan by its Scientific Committee (see Useful Shark Links, #1). The plan will be led by the Oceanic Fisheries Programme of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, and will contain assessment, research coordination and fishery statistics improvement components. The overall aim of the plan is to evaluate the status of blue, mako, oceanic whitetip, silky and thresher sharks in the western and central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) and to establish better datasets to support future assessments.  Following its recent endorsement by the Scientific Committee, the Shark Research Plan will be presented for full Commission approval at its annual meeting in Hawaii in December.

This article outlines the background and context of shark issues in the WCPO, introduces the key species and previews the forthcoming assessment work.