Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Corporate Plan 2020-2023.

The Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources Corporate Plan is a national policy with a cross-sectoral approach. This Corporate Plan sets out 4-year priority goals of the Ministry, covering the period from 2020 to 2023. The overall purpose of this policy is to strengthen and improve the management and development of fisheries and aquatic resources in a manner that promotes and enhances the wellbeing of Solomon Islanders, whilst contributing actively to a stronger economic position of the Government. The Ministry aims at providing effective services to facilitate sustainable management and development of our fisheries and aquatic resources for the benefit of the nation, in order to ensure sustainable fisheries sector that contributes to the socio-economic needs of all Solomon Islanders.
The Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources consists of six divisions focusing on offshore fisheries, inshore fisheries, project management, aquaculture, provincial fisheries, policy and planning, and corporate services. The corporate goals of the Ministry are to: (I) secure ecologically sustainable and economically secured fisheries, (II) secure maximum economic and social benefits from ecologically sustainable fisheries, (III) secure compliance with the Fisheries law, regulations, license terms and conditions, policies and international fisheries agreed obligations, and (IV) strong institutional governance to deliver accountable management of fisheries and aquatic resources. Effective management tools will be developed and applied to ensure ecologically sustainable offshore, inshore and inland fisheries. Management plans will be developed for fisheries under customary marine tenure, to protect commercial interests and manage endangered and threatened species in line with agreed international measures. The communities will be empowered to better manage their fisheries through community-based resource management learning tools. Stock assessment will be conducted for key commercial species to provide stock status for better management. Central database system will be improved to store quality data on inshore and inland fisheries. Climate change considerations will be integrated into offshore, inshore and inland fisheries. The provincial governments will be supported to manage their fisheries and aquatic resources. Management arrangements will be developed by using zone-based management tools for the country’s tuna fisheries including the adoption of conservation and management measures agreed to at sub-regional, regional and international fora.
Initiatives will be developed that allow Solomon Islanders to secure food security and derive economic and social benefits from the use of offshore, inshore and inland fisheries and aquatic resources. New business and investment opportunities will be developed for small scale fisheries. The Constituency Fisheries Centres will be promoted as a platform for livelihood diversification for small scale fisheries. Livelihood opportunities will be promoted through community-based resource management initiatives, and the provincial governments will be supported to create business opportunities. Strategies will be developed for better management and utilization of bycatch from fishing vessel operations. Longline tuna fisheries using rights-based management approaches will be localized, covering all landing and processing of longline catches. The resilience of aquaculture sector to the impacts of climate change will be increased to provide equitable livelihood opportunities for men, women and vulnerable groups. The stock of targeted depleted inland and coastal aquatic species will be enhanced through research and innovation. The private sector investments will be promoted on commercial commodities prioritized for commercial aquaculture. The legal framework will be strengthened to develop effective and efficient compliance tools that will safeguard, protect and secure the rights over fisheries and aquatic resources. The control over fisheries and aquatic resources will be strengthened through strengthened monitoring, control and surveillance arrangements and initiatives for all landing and processing ports in Solomon Islands.