Yemen’s new five-year development plan aims to boost local fish production to 248,000 tons by 2005, an average increase of 11.8 percent per annum, reported Al-Hayat. The fishing sector currently contributes to 2.4 percent of the local GDP.
Yemeni fishermen caught only 135,000 tons of fish last year, a small quantity in relation to the country’s long coast. Last year, Yemen exported $24.7 million worth of fish to foreign markets.
Official sources estimate the size of available fish reserves in Yemen at 850,000 tons. Fishermen are allowed to catch up to 350,000-400,000 tons of fish a year. — (Mena Report)
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
