Al-Mahra: Meeting discusses regulating fish prices and controlling landing and export operations

On Tuesday, Al-Mahra's Deputy Governor for Youth Affairs, Badr Salem Kalshat, chaired a meeting at the Fisheries Authority building in Al-Ghaydah. The meeting included the authority's leadership, heads of fishery associations, as well as a number of representatives from the fishing sector and exporters, to discuss mechanisms for regulating fish prices, ensuring their availability in local markets at reasonable prices, and curbing price hikes.

The meeting, which brought together the relevant authorities and exporters, resulted in an agreement to reduce the prices of several types of fish by 30 to 50%, contributing to increased supply in local markets and curbing price inflation.

The meeting discussed several regulatory measures, most notably setting fish prices based on data from landing centers and updating them daily, displaying price boards in markets across different districts, and assigning employees or monitors to oversee the markets. Market managers will be required to monitor sales activity and prices and submit reports and observations.

Emphasis was also placed on regulating fish export operations outside the governorate and the country, requiring exporters to comply with local regulations and laws, adhere to export seasons and times, and prohibit exporting outside the specified seasons. Legal action will be taken against violators, including license revocation when necessary.

The recommendations included activating the role of fishery associations at their locations, monitoring all official landing centers in the districts, providing them with employees and monitors, closing illegal landing sites, and establishing a unified mechanism to regulate the work of landing centers and their associated associations.

The meeting stressed the importance of organizing fishing seasons and establishing clear regulations for them, reducing randomness at landing sites, regulating boat traffic and numbering, as well as compiling data on landing centers and their operators and regularly submitting statistics.

The attendees also emphasized the importance of allocating a percentage of the catch of certain species to the local market, including sardines during their season, similar to the controls applied to other export-permitted species, to ensure a balance between exports and meeting local market needs.

The meeting noted the necessity for managers and supervisors of landing sites to report any issues or violations to the competent authorities, which will help enhance oversight, regulate the fishing sector, and stabilize prices in local markets.