The General Manager of National Fisheries Development Limited (NFD) Frank Wickham has, today Thursday 20 August delivered a presentation on overview of ongoing integrated operations of NFD and SolTuna to senior officers of the Policy Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Unit (PIMEU) within the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
National Fisheries Development Limited and SolTuna are both operating at Noro, Western Province, as integrated tuna fishing and processing enterprise. The key to the success of NFD and SolTuna as has been seen over many years is entrenched in their integration and cooperation as one tight unit.
National Fisheries Development Limited and SolTuna are part of the TriMarine Global Group of Companies a globally renowned leader in the fishing industry.
Collectively both NFD and SolTuna are locally managed and they provide huge employment opportunities to Solomon Islanders; and to date they employ close to 3,000 people.
Under this integrated partnership NFD with its fishing fleets of purse seiners, long line and pole and line ships supplies tuna to SolTuna and in return SolTuna adds value to NFD’s catch. Around 100,000 to 180,000 Metric Tons of tuna is caught in Solomon waters each year and approximately 24 percent of catch is processed in Solomon Islands by NFD and SolTuna.
This local processing of NFD’s tuna at SolTuna has significant impact as it has provided huge economic and social benefits to Solomon Islands. These significant benefits are derived through the creation of direct employment, indirect employment, foreign exchange, government revenue, export earnings, skills development, infrastructure development, improved fishery management and food security.
SolTuna alone and mostly at its cannery has employed around 1,800 workers of whom 67 percent of the workforce are women. And NFD on the other hand has 600 employees.
And subsequently, revenues from both fishing enterprises have contributed significantly to the Solomon Islands Government and to State-Owned Enterprises (SOE).
NFD contributes SBD16 million to State-Owned Enterprises and SBD 61.5 million to the Government (SIG). While SolTuna contributes SBD 20 million to State-Owned Enterprises (SOE); and SBD 28 million to the National Government (SIG).
Other noteworthy support from NFD and SolTuna is their provision of community support inside their locality where they have provided transport for school kids, a School Hall, assisting chili farmers, poultry farmers, staff credit union and the Noro Clinic.
Meanwhile, the National Consultant of Fundamental Reform Sector in the Policy Implementation, Management and Evaluation Unit (PIMEU), Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Mr Bernard Bata’anasia has stressed that the importance of convening regular ‘presentation seminars’ with key stakeholders outside of government or in the private sector is purposely to provide an avenue where PIMEU and the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet would be furnished with up-to-date information on important key policy issues.
He then thanked NFD for the presentation and added that this is very crucial at this time when the national government is working on re-directions of its polices as a result of impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The presentation by the General Manager of National Fisheries development Limited, Frank Wickham, is a series of seminar presentation that PIMEU would continue to convene for discussion review and analyses of key issues with relevant key stakeholders both in government and private sector.
ENDS///