SUVA, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- Fiji's Ministry of Fisheries will conduct a nationwide assessment of sea cucumber this year, to see whether the population has increased following a ban on harvest in 2017.
Sea cucumbers are one of the oldest traded commodities in Fiji, dating back more than 200 years. Due to their high economic value, sea cucumbers have been heavily exploited in Fiji over the past two decades, as they have in many other Pacific island countries.
According to Fiji Broadcasting Corporation (FBC) on Wednesday, Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama made the comment while addressing villages in Vanua Levu, Fiji's second largest island.
Bainimarama told villagers that a nationwide assessment on sea cucumber stock will be conducted soon, to see whether stocks have increased as a result of the ban to improve food security.
Following the stock assessment, the Ministry of Fisheries will then determine the most sustainable system of harvest and consumption to ensure they are not put at risk.
The decision to ban the harvest of sea cucumbers was based on a research which showed that its stock has reached critical level and would become extinct if nothing was done.
The 2017 report on Fiji's sea cucumber fishery states that between 1998 and 2012, Fiji was the second largest exporter of sea cucumbers in the Pacific, and sea cucumber was the second-most valuable commodity, after tuna.
Fiji's Ministry of Fisheries together with the Wildlife Conservation Society compiled a comprehensive report to summarize the latest science on the sea cucumber fishery in Fiji since 2013, and recommended key management measures to control its over exploitation.
