The Supreme Committee for the Exploitation, Protection, and Development of Living Aquatic Resources held its first meeting of this year, presided over by His Excellency Dr Abdullah Belhaif Al Nuaimi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment.
His Excellency Dr Al Nuaimi said: “Protection of the marine environment is a strategic priority that the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) works relentlessly to achieve through joining forces with its stakeholders and leveraging cutting-edge innovative technologies.”
He added: “As part of this priority, MOCCAE regulates the fishing sector with the aim of minimizing its impact on the sustainability of marine life. The Ministry has set out the requirements for fishing practices and the permitted fishing gear to preserve the UAE’s fisheries stocks for future generations.”
At the meeting, MOCCAE highlighted its plans to overhaul the licensing process for fishermen and fishing boats in line with the requirements of the sector to maximize efficiency. A total of 5,396 fishermen and 6,003 fishing boats are listed in the Ministry’s general registry. According to MOCCAE’s field surveys, many of the boats are non-operational, and their status must be reviewed. The surveys showed that there are 522 fishermen who own more than one licensed boat, and 362 boats registered in the names of heirs.
MOCCAE pointed out that its decision to cease the issue of new fishing boat licenses was misused, leading to the creation of a parallel market where existing licenses were traded at vastly inflated prices. As a result, lower-income fishermen were often unable to afford a fishing boat license, or placed themselves under considerable financial pressure to obtain one. Consequently, the Ministry passed a decision to cease the sale and transfer of fishing boat licenses, unless it was to a first- or second-degree relative whose livelihood depends on fishing.
During 2021, MOCCAE will review the lists of registered fishing boats in collaboration with the concerned authorities to assess their compliance with the requirements and cancel the licenses of non-operational boats. It will also adopt a new mechanism that allows conditional issue of new fishing boat licenses to support the Ministry’s priorities of enhancing food security, preserving fish stocks, and ensuring the sustainability of the fishing profession in the UAE.
Moreover, MOCCAE will admit a limited number of new fishermen in each emirate to its general registry in line with the needs of the sector.
Through issuing new licenses for fishermen and fishing boats, the Ministry seeks to create job opportunities for young Emiratis in the fisheries sector, and put an end to the trading of licenses in the parallel market.