The per capita consumption of fresh and frozen fish in the UAE is 33kg, far more than the world rate of 16.4 kg, according to an official report cited by the Khaleej Times.
The report, based on information provided by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said that fisheries in the UAE over the years had a shown considerable increase in the volume of total catch from a mere 64,000 tons in the mid-1970s to 117,608 tons in 1999.
The report attributes the increase to greatly improved efforts to produce more fish and not to any increase in the availability of fish in UAE waters, or any improvement in the catch-per-unit-effort. In fact, the catch per fisherman now is 6 tons compared to 16 tons in 1976.
This trend, however, is not confined to the UAE. It is more or less global, according to the report.
According to the paper, the government is taking steps to find ways to raise the level of production. It has now made it compulsory that all UAE fishing boats carry at least one UAE national – Albawaba.com
