He told the people of the island about the development of ports in general, which cost about 34 or 35 million kina announced by the government for Manus. Stating that some of these projects could support fishing activities.

“According to Port Authority officials, there must be containerized freezing capacity here. This is an area where it links fishing activities. If we have operators who are willing to export from Manus to other provinces, at least there is an avenue for selling frozen food at the container storage facility,” Mr. Pakop said.

He also highlighted the importance of the new airport in Momote, which links fisheries.

“If Manus operators wish to export to the foreign market, this is the way they should follow. The next steps will be the storage facilities at the airport. With such developments, you would attract fisheries like longliners, where you produce fish for the sashimi market in Japan. This requires that the fish land in Japan within a week of being fresh.

Mr Pakop said that the funding commitment of K30 million by the Minister of Fisheries for the project on Drauke is an excellent project.

“Manus is on the shipping lane between the continent and if we take advantage of this by setting up a transshipment port as part of the activities in Drauke, we will not only attract fishing vessels, but also other merchant vessels which pass through it.”

He urged Manus communities to give updates on programs relating not only to fisheries, but also to trade and industry and other government agencies.

“We can work together with these agencies to get the most out of our communities in Manus and in the country where fishers and fisheries are concerned.”