Officials from the Ministry of Environment and Water headed by Assistant Undersecretary for Water Resources and Nature Conservation Sultan Alwan, and Salah Al Raisi, Director of Fisheries, recently visited fishermen’s meeting spots in the Eastern Region to meet with the fishermen to discuss key issues and challenges that they are currently facing, listen to their observation and answer their inquiries regarding fishing and other sea affairs. The visit, which represents the Ministry’s aims to strengthen its ties with the UAE fishing community, is part of a forthcoming series of meetings that looks towards showing its support for the fishermen while also revealing its plans to develop and establish more fisheries—a move that seeks to enhance the sustainability of the country’s aquatic resources as part of the Ministry’s strategic objectives and a key element to the UAE’s Vision 2021.
During the visit, H.E. Sultan Alwan thanked the local fishermen for meeting with them and expressed the Ministry’s continued support for the fishing community. He also revealed that the Ministry is keen on working together with them in close coordination and cooperation for the development and preservation of more fishery facilities in the area.
The meeting demonstrates the Ministry’s keenness on listening to the opinions and suggestions made by the fishermen—a move that aims at strengthening the partnership and cooperation between the Ministry of Environment and Water, the local fishermen and state senior officials; further develop the fishing industry and sustainably maintain existing fisheries, which have been identified as vital and economic resources for the region.
The Assistant Undersecretary also affirmed the Ministry’s support in the efforts to support the fishing community’s needs and have also expressed the Ministry’s intentions to regulate the profession in order to ensure continuity. He also pointed out the plans to create a unified guideline and mechanism for hunting of specific fish species during certain periods of the fishing season in order to further preserve the marine environment and its aquatic resources.
At the conclusion of the meeting, the Ministry of Environment and Water officials urged the fishermen to understand the importance of the fisheries and the need to preserve the resource—a renewed national treasure that represents an important food component to the community and an essential source of income that helps improve the standard of living for the fishermen and their families.