The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) is using the commemoration of World Tuna Day as a momentum to improve this fishery commodity's quality and market reach. This effort is also part of KKP's strategy to ensure the sustainability of the tuna population."Tuna is one of the best sources of animal protein, so it must be sustainable to be enjoyed by current and future generations," said Budi Sulistiyo, Director General of Strengthening the Competitiveness of Marine and Fishery Products (PDSPKP), in a written statement in Jakarta (May 2, 2024).Budi stated that KKP has partnered with the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), a non-governmental organization that promotes sustainable seafood markets, particularly tuna. One of the key points of synergy is the MSC certification to ensure stock sustainability and minimal ecosystem impact, as well as the Chain of Custody (CoC) certification to ensure and trace that certified products come from sustainable fishery sources.Budi explained, "Fish processing units (UPI) can meet CoC certification if they implement STELINA or the national fish traceability and logistics system."Additionally, Budi emphasized KKP's commitment to marketing sustainable tuna products. For example, during the Seafood Expo North America (SENA) 2024 in the United States and the Seafood Expo Global (SEG) 2024 in Spain, the showcased tuna products were certified and implemented traceability and sustainability principles.As a result, visitors at SENA were captivated by Indonesian tuna, as shown by the potential transaction value of tuna reaching 50.45% or USD 29.50 million out of the total USD 58.47 million during SENA 2024. Meanwhile, at SEG, the potential transaction value of tuna was 21.62% or USD 13.79 million out of the total USD 63.8 million.Indonesia is the world's largest tuna producer, accounting for approximately 19.1% of the global tuna supply. Production increased to 1.5 million tons in 2023. The value of Indonesia's tuna exports (including skipjack and mackerel tuna) in 2023 was USD 927.2 million, or 16.47% of Indonesia's total fishery export value."This means that global consumers are increasingly aware of the importance of sustainable tuna products. And we are telling the world that the tuna products marketed from Indonesia have implemented these principles," he stressed.KKP has declared 2024 the Year of Indonesian Tuna to raise awareness of Indonesian tuna. This step also manifests the government's commitment to strengthening the competitiveness of tuna commodities in the global and domestic markets and sustainable tuna management.Therefore, Budi invites the public to join in managing tuna sustainably. "If we pay attention, tuna always keeps moving and stops when it dies. Thus, we must also apply the knowledge of tuna to maximize our potential to maintain tuna sustainability continuously," he concluded.Meanwhile, the Dean of the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science (FPIK) at Padjadjaran University (Unpad), Yudi Nurul Ihsan, acknowledged the vast potential of tuna in Indonesia. Its distribution includes the Banda Sea, southern Bali, Java, and west of Sumatra.Moreover, he believes Indonesia has great potential to develop tuna aquaculture, and investments in this area should be supported."We have the potential to develop tuna aquaculture, especially yellowfin tuna. Around 2010, the government conducted trials at the KKP UPT in Gondol. I think this needs to be revived and supported by banks and foreign investments, which are also quite promising," said Yudi.In managing sustainable tuna resources, especially in Indonesia's EEZ waters and the high seas, joint management between countries through Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) is required. Indonesia has been actively involved in full membership agreements with the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) since 2007, the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT) since 2008, and the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) since 2013, and as a cooperating non-member since 2013 with the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC).Previously, the Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KP), Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, inaugurated the declaration of the Year of Indonesian Tuna 2024 with the branding "Indonesia Seafood; Naturally Diverse—Safe and Sustainable." This is expected to be implemented through synergy and collaboration of all stakeholders to strengthen market access and its benefits, both for the Indonesian public in particular and the global community in general.