NTT fisheries concerns over purse‑seine activity trace back to 2018

Labuan Bajo — Statements by East Nusa Tenggara’s fisheries chief in 2018 show longstanding concern over large pelagic purse‑seine vessels operating with federal licences in Fisheries Management Area 573, including waters off NTT, but there is no evidence in available sources of a new official warning issued on 19 September 2026.

In 2018, provincial fisheries head Ganef Wurgiyanto described how large purse‑seine vessels targeting pelagic species in WPP 573 relied on fish aggregating devices, or rumpon, deployed in NTT’s offshore waters. Wurgiyanto said these purse‑seine vessels held operational permits from the national Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries to fish beyond 12 nautical miles in WPP 573, which stretches from the southern coast of Java to waters south of Nusa Tenggara, including the Sawu Sea and western Timor Sea.

He argued that the proliferation of unlicensed rumpon installations was harming local small‑scale fishers by disrupting fish migration routes.

Concerns over rumpon and purse‑seine operations

According to an interview with Wurgiyanto published in 2019, the provincial fisheries office had never issued permits for rumpon positioned within 0–12 nautical miles, even though that zone falls under provincial authority. He said he had confirmed with the national ministry that it had not issued permits for rumpon beyond 12 nautical miles either, and therefore considered all rumpon deployed in NTT waters to be illegal.

Wurgiyanto linked these illegal rumpon to large purse‑seine vessels from outside NTT. He explained that purse‑seine operators typically install rumpon offshore, often beyond 12 nautical miles, as an essential aid for concentrating pelagic fish before setting their nets. He warned that placing rumpon along migration routes and farther offshore could prevent fish from reaching areas where coastal NTT fishers work with smaller, manual gear.

Separate technical assessments of WPP 573 identify large pelagic purse seines as one of the dominant fishing gears in the area, especially in waters south of Nusa Tenggara Barat and Nusa Tenggara Timur. These studies underline that WPP 573 covers the Indian Ocean south of Java and Nusa Tenggara, the Sawu Sea and part of the Timor Sea, confirming that NTT’s southern waters are part of this national management area.

Regulatory framework and local responses

Government regulations define WPP 573 as a federal fisheries management area, with licensing of industrial vessels in offshore waters handled by the central government. In interviews, Wurgiyanto emphasised that while the province has authority over some nearshore activities, it cannot issue rumpon permits without a ministerial decree, and therefore has declined to authorise any installations.

Reports from 2018 and 2019 describe enforcement actions in NTT’s southern waters, including the seizure of multiple illegal rumpon in the Timor Sea and their transfer to provincial authorities in Kupang. Wurgiyanto used these cases to call for stronger coordination between provincial fisheries officials, maritime police and navy bases in NTT to deter unlawful rumpon deployment and to monitor purse‑seine activity linked to them.

Status of the issue

Available sources consistently portray concern within NTT’s fisheries administration over the ecological and economic effects of large purse‑seine fleets and their associated rumpon in WPP 573, dating back at least to 2018–2019. However, they do not document a specific new warning or statement issued on 19 September 2026, nor do they provide current figures on vessel numbers, catches or confirmed licence violations in WPP 573.

As a result, the issue can be described as an ongoing regulatory and enforcement challenge in NTT’s offshore fisheries, rather than a clearly documented new incident in September 2026.

Sources

• Mongabay Indonesia – "Tangkapan Ikan Nelayan Flores Timur Terus Menurun, Apa Penyebabnya?"
• Pos Kupang – "Pro-Kontra Penggunaan Rumpon, Begini Solusi dari Dinas Kelautan dan Perikanan Provinsi NTT"
• Tabloid Maritim – "BANYAK RUMPON LIAR DI PERAIRAN NTT"
• Perikanan.org – "Kondisi Stok" (technical report on WPPNRI 573)
• Government of Indonesia – fisheries management area regulation (BN 43-2011 extract)
• Journal article on bigeye tuna resources in WPP 573 (Asrihindo Zebra Journal)
• PPID Utama NTT – organisational document for Dinas Kelautan dan Perikanan