Oman’s Fishing Industry

By: Amirah Al-Alawi ‎

 Oman's Government development policy puts emphasis on the growth in ‎trade and industry sectors of non-oil division such as agriculture, fishing, ‎industry and mining. The challenge of the scheme is to branch out the ‎economy and moderate its dependence on oil exports. Its twin objective is to ‎prepare for a shortage supply of hydrocarbon reserves and uphold the ‎economic base.‎

For the purpose of this article, the focus is on the economic activity of fishery.‎ Oman's cost line stretches as far as 1700km-long, producing a traditional ‎livelihood in fishing, supporting the majority of the population before the ‎discovery of oil. The GCC provided the largest fish export market. Oman's ‎situated between the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, creating fishing as ‎second only to farming as an economic activity in pre-oil, presenting a range ‎of catches such as tune, shark, bluefish, sardines, abalone, lobster and ‎oysters.‎

As non-oil export revenue, fishing measures as one of the most promising ‎trades. In response providing employment opportunities to over 19,000 ‎registered fishermen in 1990, of which around 18,500 were employed in ‎traditional fisheries and 750 in industrial fisheries. Alarmed by the number of ‎people employed within the sector, the government stressed on modernizing, ‎expanding the fishing industry and developing its export prospects.‎

Several economic campaigns were launched aiming to develop the fishing ‎sector, naming 1988 and 1989 as years of Agriculture and 1991 and 1992 as ‎Year of Industry. The course of these campaigns is to encourage private-‎sector investment by allocating generous amounts of cash support for private ‎industry to be disbursed mainly though official development banks. Such as ‎Oman Bank for Agriculture and Fisheries that provides loans at good rates for ‎those within its repetitive activity.‎

The bank acts as a distributive institution, receiving an interest subsidy from ‎the government. In 1990 there were 1,308 loans, totalling RO 4.7 million. ‎Development programs also incorporate the government's policy of ‎indigenization, with a large component of funds.‎

Youth Vessels Project were also launched with the purpose of modernising ‎the traditional fishing sector facilities. Its idea is to provide the youth with soft ‎loans to purchase the necessary fishing equipments and build boats. ‎Training centres have been operational since 2004 in Al Khabourah and ‎Salalah: training the students in navigation systems, quality control and vessel ‎repairs. This duel strategy develops fishing industry helping the existing ‎fishermen to stay in their profession as well as Omanisation manpower.‎

The government's actions are taken in the hope to increase private-sector ‎confidence in the fishing industry and develop the industry, accordingly United ‎States-Oman Commission joined in the funding of Oman Fisheries ‎Development and Management Project to strengthen the technical, ‎administrative, and management skills of the Directorate General of Fishing ‎Resources. ‎