Pacific fishers at centre of FFA-ILO agreement to improve life at sea

The Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) has signed a new partnership with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) aimed at improving the rights, safety and working conditions of fishers across the Pacific.

The partnership, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), comes as Pacific Island countries continue to strengthen protections for crews working on fishing vessels operating in the region.

The MOU was endorsed on 13 November 2025 by Noan David Pakop, the FFA Director-General and Kaori Nakamura-Osaka, the ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.

Fisheries is central to Pacific livelihoods, food security and national economies. Thousands of Pacific people work at sea, often for long periods and far from home.

The FFA says the agreement reflects the region’s commitment to ensuring these workers are treated fairly and with dignity.

“This MOU is about putting Pacific fishers first,” Pakop says in a statement. “Our people are the backbone of the fisheries sector. They deserve safe workplaces, fair contracts and respect for their rights.

"Partnering with the ILO strengthens our ability to deliver that across the region.”

The agreement is grounded in international and regional labour standards, including the ILO Work in Fishing Convention and Pacific fisheries labour measures.

Under the MOU, the FFA and ILO will work together to support Pacific Island countries with training, guidance and practical tools.

A purse seiner in Majuro Atoll off-loads skipjack tuna to a waiting carrier vessel for transshipment to a cannery. Photo/RNZI/Giff Johnson/File

The focus areas include improving safety at sea, ensuring fair pay and clear employment contracts, preventing forced and child labour, reducing the risk of human trafficking, and improving accommodation and working conditions on fishing vessels.

The work will apply to all fishing vessels operating in Pacific waters.

Martin Wandera, Director of the ILO Office for Pacific Island Countries, says in a statement that the partnership recognises the importance of fisheries to Pacific communities.

“Fishing is the most important economic sector for many Pacific nations,” Wandera says. “This cooperation helps ensure international labour standards are respected and that fishers are treated fairly wherever they work.”

Pacific fishers have welcomed the move, saying stronger regional cooperation is needed to turn rules into real change at sea.

Joseph Maelasi, a deck crew member from the Solomon Islands who has worked on regional fishing vessels for more than a decade, says the agreement gives hope to workers.

Fishing supports thousands of Pacific families, with many crew members spending long periods at sea under challenging conditions. Photo/Greenpeace

“Life at sea can be hard, and sometimes fishers don’t feel they have a voice,” Maelasi tells PMN News. “If this partnership helps make contracts clearer, improves safety, and makes it easier for crews to speak up, that will mean a lot for Pacific families.”

The MOU will remain in place for an initial two-year period, with the option to extend it by mutual agreement. FFA says the partnership will strengthen cooperation across the region and help Pacific governments better identify and respond to labour rights concerns.

The FFA says the agreement also reinforces the Pacific’s role as a global leader in ethical labour standards and sustainable fisheries.