PNA names new chief executive

The Pacific tuna grouping, the Parties to the Nauru Agreement, or PNA, has named a new chief executive.

Dr Sangaalofa Clark is to replace ludwig Kumoru who is stepping down after four years.

Dr Clark has been the PNA's policy manager for the past eight years, with the primary duty of managing its Vessel Day Scheme which governs purse seine fishing in the western Pacific.

This scheme has led to a surge in fisheries revenue for the nine members - Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Nauru, Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, Palau and Tokelau - that enforce it in their waters.

Revenue from purse seine fishing in their exclusive economic zones has risen from $US60 million in 2010 to an estimated $US493 million last year as a result of the VDS being fully implemented.