Ministry of Foreign Affairs Supports Radar Satellite Project to Eradicate Illegal Fishing in the Pacific Region

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the 21st that it has signed a contribution agreement for a follow-up project to monitor illegal fishing using the Korea-Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Cooperation Fund and will support a radar satellite project to eradicate illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Pacific Island countries.

This project is a follow-up to the previously conducted "Illegal Fishing Monitoring Project" through the Korea-PIF Cooperation Fund. It involves installing vessel identification system (AIS) base stations in the Pacific Island countries and linking and utilizing satellite AIS information to monitor illegal fishing activities, with a total budget of 2.4 million USD by 2023.

The signing ceremony was held in Suva, Fiji, with participation from Cho Shin-hee, Ambassador to Fiji, and Meg Taylor, Secretary-General of PIF. The PIF side expressed gratitude for the support and noted that due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, there have been significant difficulties caused by the reduction of IUU fishing monitoring vessels and personnel in the Pacific region. They expect this support to greatly aid the Pacific Island countries' efforts to eradicate IUU fishing.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, "Through the IUU fishing monitoring support project for the Pacific Island countries, we are participating in the international community's efforts to eradicate IUU fishing, contributing to the stable supply of Korean seafood as a major seafood-consuming country, and at the same time, this serves as an opportunity to expand diplomatic horizons to the Pacific region by strengthening practical cooperation with the Pacific Island countries."

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