Tuna in the Western and Central pacific constitute one of the most contested fisheries in the world, with competing interests over catch allocation, trade and sustainability. One of the underlying drivers of conflict and poor cooperation is incomplete or unavailable information, creating both substantive and strategic uncertainties over management. Governments and industry alike limit the capacity of the many existing tuna information systems because catch, effort and trade statistics are considered politically sensitive and/or proprietary, despite efforts by intergovernmental bodies and donor agencies. This paper maps the existing information systems striving to create more transparency in Pacific tuna and argues that state-based information systems may be unable to overcome political and commercial interests. Our work suggests that information innovation, often led by private actors, can improve state-based management. These improvements are often local, however, and the flow of information across stakeholders can be limited, even when innovation exists. We argue that a new architecture for transparency and accountability is needed for the conservation of WCPO tuna that links existing information platforms, connects investors with local businesses and communities, and increases the availability of private data to public entities.
