Ban on new fishing licences welcomed

The Dibba Al Fujairah Fishermen's Association has praised the decision of Saeed Mohammed Al Raqabani, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, to stop the issuing new fishing licences.

Sulaiman Rashid Al Khadeem, association director, said decision No. 1907 issued on May 25 by the minister to stop issuing new licences in the East Coast will boost the industry.

"This will make fishermen who have registered fishing boats more responsible in providing the market with fish. It will remove those who did not renew their fishing licences because of carelessness."

The minister ordered the authorities to stop issuing new fishing licences as there are enough licences in the region. There is always the possibility of transferring a licence from one fisherman to another.

"The number of fishing boats in the East Coast, which the minister mentioned in his order, represents the actual number of fishermen. But there are some other registered fishing boats whose owners have not renewed licences for a long time and should be cancelled.

"When a fisherman does not renew the licence of his boat he gives us the impression that he is not really using it for fishing."

He said fishing boats whose licences have not been renewed for a year should be registered with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries which will inform owners their licences will be cancelled soon. "Then these licences can be offered to nationals who wanted to join the fishing profession."

The Eastern Agricultural Zone in Fujairah said 1,082 fishing boats were registered in 2002. They included 1,059 petrol-operated and 23 diesel-operated boats. In 2001, 503 fishing boats were registered.

There were 1,158 registered national and expatriate fishermen in Fujairah in 2002, compared to only 703 in 2001.