Muscat: The total quantity of fish landed in the Sultanate reached 403,372 tons at the end of July 2020 compared to 298,334 tons during the same period of 2019, which is a rise of 35.2 per cent, according to statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

Traditional fishing practices in the Sultanate contributed to 388,356 tons of fish at the end of July 2020, constituting a rise of 35.6 per cent over 286,483 tons in 2019.

The total value of the fish stock stood at RO186.32 million in 2020, representing a growth of 23.4 per cent over RO150.99 million in 2019.

Coastal fishing and commercial fishing contributed to about 2,294 tons and 12,721 tons of total fish landings, respectively, at the end of July 2020.

The Governorate of Al Wusta had the highest fish landing at 142,465 tons, followed by the Governorate of South A’Sharqiah at 109,320 tons, and North and South Al Batinah at 51,063 tons. The quantity of fish landed in the Governorate of Dhofar was 46,347 tons, and the quantity in Musandam was 20,098 tons. The landed quantity in Governorate of Muscat stood at 19,062 tons.

According to fish landing by species, the largest quantity of fish landed at the end of July 2020 comprised small pelagic fishes at 228,194 tons, compared to 184,799 tons at the end of July 2019, constituting a rise of 23.5 per cent. The quantity of large pelagic fish rose by 84.2 per cent to reach 92,885 tons at the end of July 2020 compared to 50.425 tons at the end of July 2019.

The quantity of demersal fish landed reached 57,075 tons, an increase of 35 per cent compared to July 2019 when it was 42,273 tons. Meanwhile, there was a rise in the quantity of crustaceans and molluscs by 14.5 per cent.

Source: ONA