Under the initiative, Samoa and Tonga will each receive a two‑year subscription to the Starboard Maritime Intelligence platform, providing their multi‑agency TCUs with near real‑time visibility of vessel activity across their maritime zones and surrounding waters. The technology supports the Pacific Transnational Crime Network (PTCN) by helping national agencies identify high‑risk vessels, suspicious behaviour and potential links to organised crime that crosses borders.
“Pacific security is New Zealand’s security,” said Prime Minister Luxon. “By investing in practical tools that our partners can use every day, we’re helping Pacific law‑enforcement agencies protect their people, their economies and our shared ocean. Enhancing capability for Samoa and Tonga also strengthens our collective response to transnational crime and supports a safer, more stable region.”
Transnational Crime Units are specialised, multi‑agency hubs that bring together police, customs, immigration and other enforcement agencies to coordinate intelligence and operations against organised crime. The new watchfloor capability will enable Samoa and Tonga’s TCUs to track vessel movements, analyse patterns over time and focus valuable patrol and inspection resources on the highest‑risk targets.
The Ministry of Transport is funding a package of seven Starboard licences to support Pacific transnational crime monitoring, with Samoa and Tonga confirmed as the first two TCUs to come online under this expanded support. New Zealand officials are working with regional partners through PTCN to define the next countries to join the programme. The initiative is designed to support national sovereignty, with each participating country retaining control of its operational workflows and data.
“This is about strengthening regional capability in a practical, scalable way,” said Trent Fulcher, Chief Executive of Starboard Maritime Intelligence. “By embedding advanced maritime analytics directly within national watchfloors, Samoa and Tonga can detect risk earlier, align intelligence across agencies, and act with greater precision. Capability deployed at this level materially improves regional resilience against organised crime operating at sea.”
Starboard’s cloud‑based platform fuses satellite, AIS and other maritime data sources to create a unified picture of vessel activity at sea. For TCUs and PTCN, it supports monitoring and investigations into a range of transnational crime challenges, including illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, people smuggling, narcotics trafficking and other organised crime threats that exploit the maritime domain.
Training for PTCN and national users on the new capability is scheduled to begin in the coming months, with a focus on integrating maritime intelligence into day‑to‑day workflows and strengthening regional information‑sharing.
Starboard Maritime Intelligence delivers actionable maritime domain awareness worldwide. Its AI-driven platform fuses multi-source data into a unified operational picture, helping governments, defence agencies, and infrastructure operators predict threats, prevent incidents, and strengthen maritime security and resilience across global waters.
www.starboardintelligence.com
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Starboard Maritime Intelligence
Amy Minty
Senior Product Marketing Manager
amy.minty@starboardintelligence.com
+64 27 331 9962
Learn more about how Starboard is the common operating picture for the maritime world.
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