Dr Transform Aqorau was the first Pacific Islander appointed as Legal Counsel and later Deputy Director General of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency, serving for 11 years. From 2010 to 2017, he established the Parties to the Nauru Agreement Office in the Marshall Islands and launched the Purse Seine and Longline Vessel Day Scheme (VDS), the world’s largest and most complex fisheries management system. Under his leadership, the VDS boosted economic returns from US$60 million in 2010 to US$500 million by 2017, marking a transformative achievement in fisheries management.
This page was updated in October 2024.
