Te Pātuitanga Ahumoana a Kiwa

To help build the knowledge and skills of fisheries staff in the Pacific, we run:

• workshops
• training sessions
• seminars.

Training focuses on fisheries fundamentals and best practices, and encourages peer-to-peer learning.

Types of training available

Training includes:

1. developing fisheries' management policy and plans
2. data analysis for reporting and decision-making
3. high seas boarding and inspection training.

1. Developing fisheries' management policy and plans

In this one-week workshop, we:

• discuss the role of policy and plans in managing a fishery
• discuss how the policies and plans are implemented
• link the plans to laws, regulations, and other policies
• work with PICT fisheries staff to develop a draft policy or management plan
• work together with regional agencies.

Te Pātui staff have run workshops for fisheries agencies in single countries and for multiple countries.

Workshops for multiple countries bring fisheries agencies from around the Pacific together to learn and share experiences.

2. Data analysis for reporting and decision-making

So far, we've held these workshops in:

• Fiji (with the coastal fisheries data collectors)
• Federated States of Micronesia (with offshore fisheries staff)
• New Zealand, where various countries participated.

3. High seas boarding and inspection training

This course focuses on:

• relevant processes and procedures
• the skills needed for boarding and inspections of fishing vessels on the high seas under the Western Central Pacific Fisheries Commission Conservation and Management Measures.

We’ve run courses for:

• fisheries compliance and enforcement staff
• maritime Police and Navy boarding officers from different Pacific Island countries.

We provide advice and mentoring on:

• fisheries management processes and systems
• monitoring, control, and surveillance.

We do this through one-on-one mentoring and group mentoring. Mentoring is either short-term or long-term, depending on what’s needed.

Through Te Pātui, Pacific Island fisheries staff can do placements within MPI or other New Zealand organisations. This can be for a few days, or for several weeks. The staff (attachés) work alongside an employee or team on relevant fisheries tasks and issues. This helps with developing skill and knowledge, and with sharing experience and ideas.

Customary fisheries attachment

Fisheries staff from Fiji and Vanuatu joined MPI to work with the customary fisheries management team. This involved attachés learning about:

• how we work with Māori communities
• customary fishing rights, and the policy and regulations that guide how these fisheries are managed
• monitoring, control, and surveillance practices in New Zealand’s customary fisheries (and how these related to their own countries’ traditional fisheries).

Te Pātui continues to work with PICT staff after face-to-face training is completed. We do this through email, phone, and using other online services.

Case study: How we've supported Tonga

We’ve worked with Tonga's Ministry of Fisheries since Te Pātui began (around 2011). Some of our work (since 2015) has been around their deepwater snapper fishery. This work has seen many in-person meetings and discussions to develop management approaches and fisheries management plans. It has also seen regular remote assistance to the team in Tonga, progressing monitoring, evaluation and learning throughout this management plan's lifespan.

The team undertook mid-term and final reviews of the previous management plan, reporting back to the ministry what its achievements were, and where the ministry needed to focus more efforts. This type of work is rarely completed due to the heavy workloads by often under-resourced administrations. It shows Tonga's commitment to continually improving it processes.

The work on the deepwater snapper fishery was funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. It was led by NIWA (the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research).

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade

NIWA

Te Pātui is developing online fisheries training modules. These will support the face-to-face activities we do. These modules will cover both the fundamentals of fisheries management, monitoring, control and surveillance, and more specialised topics. We'll provide fisheries case studies from both the Pacific and other parts of the world.

People using the modules will be able to:

• build on their knowledge
• share experiences
• get tools to implement what they learn in their home countries.