Throughout Pacific Island countries and territories (PICTs) there is broad recognition
that fisheries and aquaculture make vital contributions to economic development,
government revenue, food security and livelihoods. The Pacific Plan6 recognises that development of the region is linked to the effective management of fish, and the habitats that support them. The Future of Pacific Islands Fisheries’ study now provides a roadmap for harnessing the potential economic and social benefits of fisheries and aquaculture in the face of the many drivers influencing the sector. In this chapter, the authors begin by summarising the recent contributions of oceanic, coastal and freshwater fisheries, and aquaculture, to the region. They then explain the plans PICTs have to optimise these benefits and conclude by assessing the vulnerability of these plans to the main projected changes in production of fisheries resources and aquaculture due to climate change for 2035 and 2100 under a low (B1) and high (A2) emissions scenarios. In assessing the vulnerability of economic development and government revenue, the focus has been mainly on the projected changes to skipjack tuna because this species dominates the catches of industrial fleets. For food security, they have concentrated on the projected changes to coastal fisheries because they currently provide most of the fish eaten by people in Pacific communities. The projected effects of climate change on all fisheries resources and aquaculture have been considered in assessing the vulnerability of livelihoods.