Muscat: The total quantity of fish landed in the Sultanate reached 446,881 tons at the end of August 2020 compared to 323,335 tonnes during the same period of 2019, which is a rise of 38.2%, according to statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
Traditional fishing practices in the Sultanate contributed to 422,161 tonnes of fish at the end of August 2020, constituting a rise of 36.3% over 309,821 tonnes in 2019. The total value of the fish stock was RO 209.44 million in 2020, representing a growth of 21% over RO 173.13 million in 2019.
Coastal fishing and commercial fishing contributed to about 2,414 tons and 22,307 tonnes of total fish landings, respectively, at the end of August 2020.
The Governorate of Al Wusta had the highest fish landing at 149,728 tonnes, followed by the Governorate of South Al Sharqiyah at 121,753 tonnes, and North and South Al Batinah at 56,571 tonnes. The quantity of fish landed in the Governorate of Dhofar was 51,034 tonnes, and the quantity in Musandam was 21,662 tonnes. The landed quantity in Governorate of Muscat stood at 21,413 tonnes.
According to fish landing by species, the largest quantity of fish landed at the end of August 2020 comprised small pelagic fishes at 242,944 tonnes, compared to 193,728 tonnes at the end of August 2019, a rise of 25.4%. The quantity of large pelagic fish rose by 84.3% to reach 104,489 tonnes at the end of August 2020 compared to 56,691 tonnes at the end of August 2019.
The quantity of demersal fish landed reached 61,374 tonnes, an increase of 27.7% compared to August 2019 when it was 48,080 tonnes. Meanwhile, there was a rise in the quantity of crustaceans and molluscs by 33.1%. --ONA
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
