Fish landing rises by 4.7 per cent in February

Muscat: The total quantity of fish landed in the Sultanate reached 94,978 tonnes by the end of February 2019 compared to 90,743 tonnes during the same period of 2018, which is a rise of 4.7 per cent, according to statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). Traditional fishing in the Sultanate contributed to 93,886 tonnes of fish landings till the end of February 2019, constituting an increase of 4.8 per cent over 89,577 tonnes in 2018. The total value of the fish stock was RO 49.911 million in 2019 compared to RO 35.949 million in 2018 representing a growth of 38.8 per cent. The Governorate of Al Wusta had the highest fish landing at 41,021 tonnes, followed by South Al Sharqiyah at 26,265 tonnes, and Dhofar at 9,380 tonnes. The quantity of fish landed in North and South Al Batinah was 8,258 tonnes, and Musandam 6,129 tonnes. The landed quantity in Muscat stood at 2,834 tonnes. According to fish landing by species, the largest quantity of fish landed by the end of February 2019 comprised small pelagic fishes at 58,093 tonnes, compared to 61,464 tonnes at the end of 2018, a decrease of 5.5 per cent. The quantity of large pelagic fish increased by 44.7 per cent to reach 16,744 tonnes by the end of February 2019 compared to 11,574 tonnes by the end of 2018. The quantity of demersal fish landed reached 17,351 tonnes, an increase of 26.6 per cent compared to February 2018 when it was 13,706 tonnes. Meanwhile, there was a decline in the quantity of sharks and rays by 12.5 per cent and crustaceans and molluscs 54.3 per cent. Coastal fishing and commercial fishing contributed to about 1,090 tonnes and 2 tonnes of total fish landings, respectively, by the end of February 2019. — ONA