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In 2002, AUS$40,000 was approved by the Government of Tuvalu under the Special Development Expenditure (SDE) allocation for this specific project. Two staffs from the Fisheries Research Section were attached in the Cook Islands on pearl farming for 2 months. The staffs spent one month on Manihiki Island working with pearl farmers on their farm and one month on Penrhyn Island in the hatchery. Materials for pearl farm were also purchase under this budget.
Unfortunately the section has not start up a pearl farm yet due to the fact that the low number of pearl oyster shells with in the Tuvalu lagoons. A report (1991) on pearl oysters in one of the island stated that the number of shells in their lagoon is less than 10. The department first of all will carry out survey on islands with lagoons to find out the survival rate of oyster shells.