Maldives Tuna Think Tank 12 to 13 February 2025 Male, Maldives Representatives from key segments of the tuna fisheries value chain in the Republic of Maldives gathered in Malé on 12-13 February 2025 for the Tuna Think Tank Workshop. This event brought together significant stakeholders, including delegates from the Maldivian government, fish processing companies, tuna exporters, local financial institutions, science and sustainability experts, and development partners such as international impact investors, insurance companies, and multilateral organizations. The primary objective of the workshop was to create a comprehensive roadmap for the Maldives tuna sector. This roadmap aims to consolidate Blue Economy efforts, enhance the sustainability of the industry throughout the tuna value chain, and secure access to financing that supports its transformation and growth. By reviewing each step in the value chain, the workshop sought to identify actions that ensure the industry delivers high-quality products in line with the highest sustainability standards and receives appropriate value for its impact. Given the critical role of the fisheries sector in the Maldivian economy—accounting for 6% of the national GDP, 11% of employment, and over 80% of export revenue—the sustainable tuna industry is essential for enhancing economic resilience, promoting food security, and ensuring social and environmental sustainability. The roadmap’s development focused on actions needed to secure financing and to sustainably grow the industry alongside lasting partnerships. The workshop participants identified several key challenges, including limited coordination and dialogue among stakeholders, access to affordable financing, and access to both local and international markets. Specific issues included insufficient financial and risk management capacity, inadequate local financial products, high cost of capital due to perceived risks, and limited recognition of the sector's impact. Additionally, gaps in investment- and impact-readiness, fractured value chain integration, and limited technical expertise and resources were highlighted as barriers to market positioning and securing premium pricing for the tuna sector's impact-driven initiatives. One of the key outcomes of the workshop was the agreement to establish a Tuna Think Tank Working Group. This well-resourced group, with clear terms of reference, will develop, coordinate, and implement actions. Focus areas include enabling conditions, finance and funding ecosystem, sustained market differentiation, and harvest sector professionalization. The group will drive the action plan, ensuring continuous engagement, priority alignment, and effective monitoring, evaluation, and reporting towards sustainability and investment goals. To support this initiative, capacity-building support and training were deemed essential. Technical assistance will be provided to build capacity among tuna fishing and processing businesses through tailored training on investment readiness, sustainability, and operational best practices. Further support programs will enhance internal capacity for key value chain stakeholders, delivering specialized local and international expertise in new sustainable project design, business planning, and financial readiness. This effort will contribute to the development of a pipeline for the ADB SME BlueImpact Asia, a blended finance platform providing access to blue SMEs leveraging catalytic funding, as the workshop identified a huge potential to invest in a more sustainable value chain. This financing requires mobilization of private sector financing which could be supported by financial intermediation loans. Such program can be scaled up and replicated in other countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines, and the Pacific. The stakeholders are committed to continuing active collaboration to support the action plan. The goal is to create a sustainable roadmap for the Maldives tuna sector, ensuring the delivery of valued products that benefit fishers, processors, the Maldivian people, and customers worldwide, serving as a model for development throughout the region. Program and Learning Materials 12 February 2025 13 February 2025 Session / Activity Title Speaker(s) Day 1 - Presentation Slides from day 1 Thomas Egli Welcome Remarks Welcome Remarks Welcome Remarks Ahmed Shiyam Welcome Remarks Enrico Gaveglia, UNDP Maldives Resident Representative Welcome Remarks Thomas Kessler, ADB Session 1: Introduction What does sustainability mean for the tuna sector in the Maldives? Understanding of sustainability and the local landscape Thomas Egli Session 2: The local landscape Presentation of experts & workshop participants, Mappng of Maldives Thomas Egli, SustainaSea Session 3: In the same boat Deep dive: Looking at the Maldivian landscape through a Blue Economy lens Thomas Egli, SustainaSea Session 3: In the same boat Group exercise: live poll Thomas Egli Session 3: In the same boat Video: What is the Blue Economy? Understanding of Blue Economy and its value as an opportunity for the tuna sector in the Maldives Thomas Egli Session 4: The Maldivian tuna sector and certifications Breakout session: Challenges and potential future benefits for SMEs from certifications Session 5: Storytelling as a market access tool Reinforcing fishery supply chains through storytelling: a crash course Value of storytelling for all sectors of the Blue Economy Tamsin Raine Session 6: Insuring the Blue Economy Insurance as a safeguard for business activities and a derisking tool for finance Identifcation of different forms of insurance and the most cost appropriate form for tuna sector stakeholders Thomas Kessler, Ariane Kapolun Session 7: Preparing for Funding What investors and funders need from SMEs Joan Fulton, Finance4Blue Day one closing Conclusions Thomas Egli, SutainaSea Session / Activity Title Speaker(s) Day 2 - Presentation Slides form day 2 Thomas Egli Recap Day 1 Key findings from the workshop day 1 Thomas Egli, SustainaSea Session 1: Preparing for Funding What investors and funders need from SMEs Joan Fulton, Finance4Blue Session 3: Risk Assessment Risk identification and mitigation Thomas Kessler, ADB Session 3: Finance facilities for change Features of a sectoral, national, or regional finance with derisking elements Richard Speak, FinanceEarth Session 4: The case for mas-huni Achieving a pre-competitive edge in the international market Thomas Egli, SustainaSea Session 4: The case for mas-huni Traceability solutions for impact Potential for improvement to succeed in the tuna market Alan Steele Session 5: Roles & responsibilities while setting a course Building on the identified gaps, capacity building, training, outlining the functions and responsibilities that existing and new entities can execute All Session 6: Next steps and way forward Conclusions towards an action plan Thomas Egli, SustainaSea Session 7: Wrap up Stakeholder Declaration Summarize recommendations and action plan Thomas Kessler, Thomas Egli Disclaimer The views expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term “country” in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. Event Coordinator/s Thomas Egli Thomas Kessler ADB Organizer/s Finance Sector Office Partner Organization/s SustainaSea Blue Economy Advisors Topics Environment Finance