Sunday 22 / December / 2024
Jala’an Bani Bu Ali: Oman produced 416 tonnes of lobsters in 2015, compared to 302 tonnes in 2014, a rise of 38 almost 38 per cent according to a senior official of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.
The fisheries sector in the Wilayat of Jala’an Bani Bu Ali in the Governorate of South A’Sharqiyah is one of the main activities and economic investment of domestic product as a pillar of economic development in the Sultanate through its leading role in providing employment opportunities for the citizens of the Wilaya and as being a renewable natural and continuing resource.
The 28 coastal areas in the Wilayat of Jala’an Bani Bu Ali enjoy a strategic location and stretch on the coastline of the Arabian Sea for over 180 km. These areas are the biggest exporters of high quality fish and many residents of these areas work in fishing.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, represented by the Department of Fisheries Development in the Wilayat of Jala’an Bani Bu Ali has provided many of the needs for the development of fisheries sector by providing a number of projects for the production and export of all kinds of fish. This step helped in providing many business opportunities for community members.
Salim bin Sultan Al Araimi, Director of Fisheries Development Department in the Wilayat of Jala’an Bani Bu Ali said in a statement that the latest statistics on the number of fishermen working in fishing in the coastal areas of the Wilayat of Jala’an Bani Bu Ali indicate that there are 508 fishermen, with 2,682 fishing boats of various sizes, 197 fishing vessels (locally known as Lunch”, made of fiberglass or wood, in addition to 628 trucks for transporting and marketing of fish.
There are 30 fish plants across the Wilaya. This natural wealth is transported through various channels, locally, regionally and internationally depending on demand and capabilities.
He pointed out that the Sultanate produced 416 tonnes of lobster in 2015, compared to 302 tonnes in 2014, (a rise of 37.7 per cent) according to the ministry’s statistics, adding that Governorates of Dhofar, Al Wusta and South A’Sharqiyah were the most productive. The lobster has good sale value, where the per kilogramme price ranges from ONA3.5 to ONA4.5 and it is consumed locally, as well as exported to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and some Asian and European countries.
The fishing harbor in the Niyabat of Al Ashkharah in the Wilayat of Jala’an Bani Bu Ali is one of the most important basic services that have contributed to the development of the fisheries sector in the Governorate.
The fishing harbor facilitates the traffic of fish vessels and boats, in addition to providing fuel, commodities, ice and all fishing requirements. The harbor was established in 2001 and started operation in 2004. The importance of the port also lies in attracting investments, development of economic activity, helps to maintain the quality of the fish through storing them in the designated fish boxes, and to facilitate the unloading of these fish from the ships to trucks of transportation and marketing of fish, taking into account quality control.
Al Araimi said that the activity of the branch of the Oman Fisheries Company in the Niyabat of Al Ashkharah is represented in the export of fish of all kinds for the main branch of the company in order to cover the needs of local markets, and then distributed through the company’s channels of shops and branches in order to contribute to food security and the provision of fish, adding that branch of Al Ashkharah receives about 35 tonnes per day.
